China Open 2017: HS Prannoy laments poor scheduling after second-round loss

What's the story?

HS Prannoy bowed out of the ongoing China Open on Thursday, going down to Lee Cheuk Yiu in straight games as the scoreline read 21-19 21-17. He expressed his disappointment after the match, tweeting about his gruelling schedule and how he had two play two rounds in 12 hours.

He also stated that he could have made a better effort today if he would have received enough rest after a tough three-set match on Wednesday.

2 rounds in a gap of 12 hours = DEAD! Could have tried a bit more today if I had enough rest after gruelling 3 setter last night! #chinaopen

— PRANNOY HS (@PRANNOYHSPRI) November 16, 2017

In case you didn't know

Prannoy, who entered the tournament ranked number 11 in the world, was the top Indian shuttler in the men's singles draw after Srikanth Kidambi's withdrawal. The Kerala-born player came into the competition fresh off the back of a sensational victory at the Senior National Championships, where he defeated Srikanth in the final.

The heart of the matter

The Indian was up against Lee Dong Keun from South Korea in his opening match and came through in a gruelling 89-minute encounter after losing the first game, which ended 18-21.

The second was won by Prannoy 21-16, with the decider going the distance as well at 21-19. The match ended quite late in the day and his next round encounter was quite early on Thursday, which understandably had a detrimental effect on his Prannoy's performance.

He tweeted this after the schedule for Thursday was announced:

Finishes my first round at 11 30 pm and second round scheduled at 12 30 pm tomorrow??? #crazyshedule #superseries ??????

— PRANNOY HS (@PRANNOYHSPRI) November 15, 2017

What's next?

Along with Prannoy, another ace Indian shuttler bowed out of the China Open as Saina Nehwal was ousted by Akane Yamaguchi in straight games. PV Sindhu, who plays her second-round match later on Thursday, will be up against Han Yue of China.

Author's take

It is quite disappointing to see poor scheduling getting in the way of players giving their best performances. One expects the organizers to be more considerate in such cases, especially given the magnitude of the tournament.