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Japan Open: Sikki Reddy, Pranaav Jerry Chopra lose in mixed doubles semis
The Indian pair had previously won the Syed Modi International Badminton Championships at the beginning of the year, but could not progress beyond the second round at a Superseries event before this tournament.
New Delhi: India's Pranaav Jerry Chopra and N Sikki Reddy lost 21-14, 15-21,19-21 to Japan's Takuro Hoki and Sayaka Hirota at the Japan Open in the mixed doubles semi-final on Saturday.
The Indian pair had previously won the Syed Modi International Badminton Championships at the beginning of the year, but could not progress beyond the second round at a Superseries event before this tournament.
Chopra/Sikki got going quickly as they took an early 5-3 lead in the first game. As they led 8-6, their Japanese opponents started giving them a hard time, pushing forward to level at 9-9. The Indian duo, however, scored two quick points to lead 11-9 going into the changeover.
The Indian duo raced ahead to a 15-10 lead as they scored three back-to-back points to create a five-point margin.
The gap turned out to be essential as Hoki/Hirota, while continuously scoring points, failed to score more than two points at one go. Chopra/Sikki, thereby, went with the momentum to earn a game point and convert the same soon after.
The second game saw a more defensive side of Hoki/Hirota, only playing their third tournament together as a mixed doubles team, as they led 3-1. They then quickly created a six-point margin early on to lead at 8-2.
Trailing at 7-11 at the changeover, the Indian pair struggled to bridge the gap as the Japanese duo edged ahead. At 10-15, they found their confidence back, scoring three consecutive points to reduce their opponents' lead. However, Hoki/Hirota, who had found momentum by then, halted their progress to race ahead and take the match to a decider.
The final game started off as a neck-and-neck chase as the two pairs tied at 3-3. Continuing a similar pattern till 9-9, the Japanese duo broke away to lead 11-9 at the changeover.
Capitalising on the lead, Hoki/Hirota took the next two points to lead at 13-9. Chopra/Sikki attempted a comeback, bridging the gap to 12-14. Continuing to trail at 18-19, Chopra/Sikki missed the next shot, giving away two match points to their opponents, which the latter converted in their second attempt to advance to the final.