KUALA LUMPUR: A World Tour title continues to elude India's women's singles ace, P.V. Sindhu.
On Sunday, the 28-year-old squandered an eight-point advantage at 11-3 in the deciding game against China's Wang Zhi Yi, eventually losing 16-21, 21-5, 21-16 in the Malaysia Masters final at Axiata Arena in Bukit Jalil.
Nonetheless, Sindhu refused to be disheartened by the near-miss and is hopeful that her restored confidence will help her get back on track with her preparations for the Paris Olympics.
Sindhu has struggled to impress since her last appearance in the semi-finals of the Denmark Open last October.
In fact, the 2019 world champion had not reached a final since the 2023 Spain Masters. Moreover, it has been over two years since she last lifted a trophy, which she last achieved at the 2022 Singapore Open.
"It's very disappointing. It's one of those days where, you know, it just wasn't my day," said Sindhu.
"But overall, I need to take positives from this tournament. I think there's been a good improvement from my side, definitely on the confidence.
"I need to be happy that I came to the final after a long time, played the final, and had really good matches throughout this tournament."
Meanwhile, Zhi Yi earned herself a consolation with her third title of the year after missing out on qualifying for the Paris Olympics.
Her other two titles were at the Indonesia Masters in January and the Asia Championships in April. Zhi Yi was proud of how she bounced back to turn the tables on Sindhu.
"I kept believing in myself and didn't give up easily," said Zhi Yi, who is the country's No. 4 behind Chen Yu Fei, He Bing Jiao, and Han Yue.
"I just focused on taking it one point at a time, not worrying too much about the final result or trying to catch up on the score. I just stayed patient and steady."
Meanwhile, Japan's top seeds Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi defeated South Korea's Lee Yu Lim-Shin Seung Chan 17-21, 21-19, 21-18 in the women's doubles final.