Parupalli Kashyap went down fighting to former World No. 1 Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia in the first round of the men's singles event in what turned out to be a mixed day for the Indians at the Yonex Sunrise India Open here today.
While K Srikanth posted an upset victory over World No. 6 Jan O Jorgensen of Denmark in another men's singles event, Arvind Bhat expectedly lost to World No. 8 Kenichi Togo.
Kashyap, the fifth seeded Indian, fought hard but failed to prevail over the more experienced Taufik. Kashyap lost 21-13 21-23 18-21 in a battle that lasted exactly an hour at the Siri Fort Sports Complex.
Kashyap has never defeated Taufik. They had met six times before this clash.
In the opening game, Kashyap gave Taufik a run for his money. Relying on his quick smashes and drop shots at the net, the Indian proved to be better than his opponent.
The World No. 7 Indian surged ahead to a 16-10 lead and eventually wrapped up the game 21-13.
The second game, however, was a see-saw battle and could have gone either way. But Taufik raised his game when it mattered most. There were smashes from both sides, while Taufik proved better at net play.
Levelled at 20-20, Kashyap hit a smash to make it 21-20 and earn the match point. But an unforced error saw him concede it. Taufik took advantage of it and went on to win three straight points to seal the game 23-21.
That was probably the turning point of the match, as in the third and deciding game, Taufik got Kashyap involved in long rallies. The longest rally was won by the Indonesian.
A few minutes later, Taufik was seen arguing with the match referee over a line call, which made it 16-16. But that didn't break his rhythm.
Kashyap also kept his momentum going and it was neck and neck till 18-18, but in the end Taufik ran away with three easy points on the trot to win the match.
"He was picking up my shots, so I had to play him at the net. I should have avoided him at the net but I could not help it," said Kashyap.
"It was a close match and anyone could have won it but at the end he was too good," he added.
