Shuttler Jayaram loses in Vietnam Open final
Ho Chi Minh City: Indian shuttler Ajay Jayaram lost to Indonesian Shesar Hiren Rhustavito in straight games in the final of the Vietnam Open here on Sunday.
World No.79 Rhustavito defeated No.93 Jayaram 21-14, 21-10 in 28 minutes to win the title at the Nguyen Du Cultural Sports Club.
In the first game, Jayaram and Rhustavito fought well till the mid-game interval. But Rhustavito raced to 21-14 victory with a dominating show after the break.
The Indonesian kept up the momentum as he took a 14-5 lead to make the win a mere formality. Jayaram surrendered at 10-21 in the second game.
Jayaram wrote in an Instagram post after the defeat: “Silver it is. Hurts to describe today’s match. Started badly, never found any rhythm and couldn’t find a way to get myself back into the match. All credit to the Indonesian for staying on top.
“It’s easy to be hard on yourself when you have a bad loss. While being critical of yourself is important, I think I do need to look at the positives from the week,” the 30-year-old added.
“I’ve managed to play some quality badminton these past couple of months. Need to keep the hard work going and I’m sure I’ll keep getting stronger.”