PV Sindhu sees 'room to improve' after French Open loss to An Se Young

PV Sindhu lost to An Se Young in three games in the French Open final but took positives from another strong run on the circuit. The Indian shuttler admitted there was still plenty of room for improvement after letting an 8-5 lead slip in the decider.PV Sindhu won her first game since 2023 vs Young, but could not go the distance. (Photo: BWF/Badminton)Paris,Oct 25, 2026 18:37 ISTPV Sindhu may have fallen short of the French Open title, but the Indian shuttler believes there is plenty to take away from her three-game battle against world No. 1 An Se Young. Despite suffering another defeat against the South Korean, Sindhu is encouraged by her progress and insists there is still significant room for improvement.Sindhu went down 21-16, 11-21, 12-21 in the final on Sunday, extending her head-to-head losing streak against An to 11 matches. However, the Indian had her moments, winning the opening game and taking an 8-5 lead in the decider before An turned the contest around.PV Sindhu vs An Se Young, French Open 2026 Final: HIGHLIGHTS“Definitely, there's a lot of room to improve. I'm absolutely looking forward to playing much better badminton. I'm happy with how things are going, but I think there's still a lot of scope for improvement, and I'm looking forward to it,” Sindhu said after the match. The final was another encouraging outing for Sindhu, who won the Japan Open in July to claim her first title of the season. Her run in Paris also included a hard-fought semi-final win over Japan's Hina Akechi, as she reached her second Super 750 final of the year.SINDHU KNOWS WHERE IT SLIPPED AWAYSindhu made a bright start against An, using her sharp net play and taking the shuttle early to put the top seed under pressure. But An adjusted her approach in the second game, focused on her defence and gradually found her timing. “Sindhu is a very strong and aggressive player, so I focused on my defence. After that, I was struggling a little to find my timing,” An said, explaining how she approached the contest.The Indian still looked well placed in the decider when she moved 8-5 ahead. An, however, fought back to level the score before taking an 11-9 lead at the change of ends. Sindhu felt that was a key moment in the match.“Even in the third game, I felt I should have maintained my lead when I was ahead 8-5. Unfortunately, she turned it around to make it 11-9 before we changed ends. I think that was where I felt the difference was,” Sindhu said.An admitted she had rushed her shots in the opening game but was able to settle down after changing her approach.“In the first game, I think I was rushing a little. In the second game, I tried not to rush and focused more on my defence. After that, I was able to find my timing,” she said.LONG RALLIES OFFER POSITIVESSindhu also pointed to the intensity required to compete against an opponent of An's calibre, with both players involved in several demanding rallies. The Indian felt converting more of those exchanges could have changed the outcome.“When you're playing against top athletes, you have to be at 100 per cent on every single point. There were long rallies, and the points weren't easy to win. It was good that we had those long rallies, but perhaps if I could have converted more of them into points, the result might have been different,” Sindhu said.For An, the French Open title was another marker of a remarkable season, while Sindhu will take confidence from reaching another major final and pushing the world No. 1 for long spells. The Indian's Japan Open triumph in July had already underlined her ability to challenge the best, and her performance in Paris offered further encouragement despite the defeat.Both players now face decisions over their next steps on the circuit. An said she would celebrate with a good French or Korean meal before resting and following her recovery routine, and would then decide whether to play more tournaments or take time off. Sindhu, meanwhile, leaves Paris with a clear assessment of what needs work and the belief that her best badminton is still ahead of her.- Ends