Two of India's best badminton players in B Sai Praneeth and Kidambi Srikanth are set to make history when they face off later today in the finals of the OUE Singapore Open. This final marks the first time two Indians will compete against each other in a Super Series final. China, Indonesia and Denmark are the only other three nations to have two players play in the finals of a Super Series event.
The last time the two Indians met was at the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold in Lucknow and Sai Praneeth emerged victorious. In fact, from their last five meetings, Srikanth has just managed one win and despite being ranked higher, he has not been able to outdo his compatriot.
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Srikanth has been struggling with a lot of fitness issues in the past and after reaching his first final in two years, after defeating Indonesia's Anthony Sinisuka Ginting 21-13, 21-14, he will be looking to make the most of this opportunity.
Srikanth, ranked 29th in the world, will now be looking to claim his third super series title against the 30th ranked Sai Praneeth who is competing in probably the biggest final of his career. Despite Srikanth proving to be the more experienced and the higher ranked player, Sai Praneeth will certainly fancy his chances given his current form and record.
Sai Praneeth had a really easy match in the semifinals against three-time Korea Masters Grand Prix Gold winner Dong Keun Lee as he won 21-6, 21-8 in just 17 minutes. He was also on course to win the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold in January but suffered a shoulder injury. However, he has still continued his impressive form at the OUE Singapore Open.
One could say that the withdrawal of Jan O Jorgensen and Chen Long played a big role in helping the two Indians get to the finals. After all Sai Praneeth was drawn to play Jorgensen in the first round and Srikanth could have faced Chen Long in the second round.
Where to watch
The men's OUE Singapore Open final is set to start at around 12:30 pm IST.
TV and Live streaming information
India: TV: Star Sports 4/HD. Live streaming: Hotstar.
Live score update: BWF world super series.
