India suffered a narrow 2–3 defeat against hosts Denmark in their Uber Cup Group A opener on Friday, April 24, despite a strong start from PV Sindhu in the tie.
The two-time Olympic medallist set the tone for India with a hard-fought 21-13, 18-21, 21-17 win over Denmark’s Line Christophersen, giving India an early 1–0 lead. Sindhu showed control in the opening game but was pushed hard in the second before holding her nerve in the decider, finishing strongly with a late surge.
However, India could not build on that momentum as the tie slipped away in the following matches. Unnati Hooda and Tanvi Sharma lost their respective singles encounters, allowing Denmark to take a 2–1 lead. In the doubles rubber, Shruti Mishra and Priya Konjengbam were also defeated, sealing the tie in Denmark’s favour.
India did manage to avoid a complete whitewash, with Tanisha Crasto and Sindhu combining in the final match to secure a consolation win and bring the final scoreline to 2–3.
In Sindhu’s opening match, she initially dominated the first game before being tested in the second as Christophersen fought back strongly. The Danish shuttler led deep into the second game before Sindhu levelled late, but the match went to a decider. In the third game, Sindhu trailed at multiple stages but staged a strong comeback, winning six of the last seven points to close out the contest with composure.
Elsewhere in the tie, Unnati Hooda came close to turning her match around, saving multiple match points before narrowly losing a tight three-game battle. Tanvi Sharma also started well but faded after the first game, while the doubles pair missed crucial match points in a closely fought encounter.
India will now look to regroup ahead of their next Group A matches against Ukraine and China.
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