World No 36 Kiran George on Friday was eliminated from the 24th edition of the Indonesia Masters Super 500 after losing in straight-sets to Malaysia’s Kunvalut Vitidsarn in the quarterfinals. Kiran lost 14-21, 6-21 to the world No 9 player in 43 minutes.
At 16, Unnati Hooda champion-material for sure, as father focused on improving skill
PV Sindhu at number 16 in World’s highest-paid female athletes 2023 list
Satwik-Chirag, predicament of doubles badminton & the great Indian tragedy
Need to wait & see if next generation after Sindhu & Saina is ready: Aparna Popat
He was the last Indian in the tournament as both Lakshya Sen and Priyanshu Rajawat lost their Round of 16 match on Thursday.
In the first set, Kiran got off to a good start in the initial exchanges but found himself trailing 8-11 after the interval. After the break, Kiran managed to keep pace with Vitidsarn, but the latter went on a 4-point winning run to take a commanding lead and finally closed the set 21-14.
In the second game, Kiran showed more intensity and caught up with Vitidsarn at 3-3 and 4-4. However, this was short-lived as Vitidsarn won 11 consecutive points on both ends of the half-break to take an unassailable lead. Kiran was able to win just one more point, while Vitidsarn had a massive 14 match points, which he was able to hold off with ease to finish off the game 21-6.
Kiran’s loss ended India’s charge in the tournament, with no Indians qualifying for the semi-final.