Asian Games: HS Prannoy settles for bronze, loses in men's singles badminton semifinal

Shuttler HS Prannoy became only the second medalist in men's singles to secure a podium finish after Syed Modi's bronze in 1982.

Hangzhou:Indian shuttler HS Prannoy settled for bronze after suffering a defeat in the semifinal against China's Li Shinfeng in straight sets in the Asian Games here on Friday.

Prannoy and his Chinese opponent were going neck to neck in the first set at the start as the scores were levelled at 5-all. However, Prannoy hit a couple of down-the-line shots to race ahead of the opponent by two points.

Further, some aggressive strokeplay from the Indian star helped him take his score to 12 but the gap between the two players was narrowed down to only a single point as a result of some unforced error from him. Li Shinfeng turned the tables soon and took a lead of 16-14 as a result of some weak returns from Prannoy. Further, the Chinese shuttler continued his scoring momentum taking the first set by 21-16 and stamping his authority on it.

Prannoy took a slender lead of 3-2 in the second set with an aim to bounce back in the fixture but once Shinfeng started coming into the grove there was no way for Prannoy to emerge victorious. The 23-year-old Chinese shuttler capitalised on errors committed by Prannoy and was dominant in the second set. Shinfeng entered the final of the men's singles with a scoreline of 21-16, 21-9. Although, Prannoy lost in the semifinal he created history as it was India's only second-ever medal in men’s singles at the Asian Games, after Syed Modi’s bronze in the 1982 Games in New Delhi.