HS Prannoy Loses the Men's Final in Swiss Open

    Indian shuttler HS Prannoy couldn't win the Swiss Open 2022 men's singles final against Jonatan Christie of Indonesia.

    H S Prannoy plays a shot during the Swiss Open final H S Prannoy plays a shot during the Swiss Open final

    The match lasted for 48 minutes and the Indonesian beat him 12-21 18-21 at St. Jakobshalle arena.

    Since 2017, the Indian athlete has not won any title which could be a result of his shaky defense.

    Even in the final showdown on March 28, 2022, he was not steady while Jonatan Christie displayed a strong skill set.

    Christie's smashes put HS Prannoy under pressure

    In the opener, Jonatan Christie quickly took a 4-1 lead by winning three points on the trot.

    The Indian shot back to win four consecutive points and settled the score to 5-4. He made another effort to lead the game at 7-5 but couldn't surpass Jonatan Christie's fabulous four-point streak that established a 12-8 lead.

    At 13-10, the Indonesian created a huge gap with a seven-point burst to take a 20-10 lead and went on to win the opening game 21-12.

    H S Prannoy gave a tough fight in the second set and leveled the score to 7-7. However, Christie powered up and pushed it to 11-7 by the interval. The pressure began to mount on H S Prannoy during the rallies and Christie was composed throughout.

    He threw remarkable crosscourt smashes and displayed fine front-court play. HS Prannoy revved up his gameplay and pushed the score to 13-13 but a reversal slice brought Jonatan  Christie back into his form.

    He broke H S Prannoy's winning streak and established a 19-14 lead with HS Prannoy committing several errors.

    Jonatan Christie secured another winner generating five championship points. Prannoy won three more points before giving away the men's single title of Swiss Open Super 300 to the world number eight.

    Star shuttler Prannoy expected to bounce back

    Over the past seven months, H S Prannoy has instilled changes in his training.

    He has learned how to listen to his gut, fixated on breathing mechanics, and sought mental support. "I realised I was breathing very hard during matches and not recovering well.

    "Proper breathing can lower the heart rate and quickens the recovery process too. It's also helping me with my rib cage issues," he remarked.

     

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