India's PV Sindhu finished runner-up at the French Open badminton tournament on Sunday, losing a three-game women's singles final to world No. 1 An Se Young of South Korea, 21-16, 11-21, 12-21, at the Arena Grand Paris.

Sindhu, the two-time Olympic medallist, made a flying start, using her reach and attacking strokes to take the opening game 21-16 in 20 minutes — only the second time in 11 career meetings that she had managed to win a game against the reigning Olympic and world champion.

The comeback, and the decider that slipped away

An responded strongly in the second game, improving her control of the rallies and capitalising on Sindhu's errors to win 21-11 and force a decider. Sindhu led 8-5 early in the third game, but An drew level at 8-8 and then pulled away with powerful smashes and precise placement, closing out the match 21-12 in 61 minutes overall.

The win gave An her fourth French Open title. It was also her third consecutive appearance in the tournament's final. Sindhu, meanwhile, was appearing in her maiden French Open final, having beaten Japan's Hina Akechi 21-10, 20-22, 21-16 in a demanding semi-final.

Despite the defeat, Sindhu's campaign offered encouragement. She had already won the Japan Open in July, her first title since December 2024, and the French Open run was her second Super 750 final of the season. “I'm absolutely looking forward to much better badminton from me,” she said afterwards. “I'm happy with this, but I think there's a lot of space, a lot of room still there.”

Source: The Indian Eye (ANI)