Shuttler Srikanth bows out of Japan Open

Tokyo: Ace Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth bowed out of the tournament after going down in the quarter-final match against Marc Zweibler of Germany at the Japan Open here on Friday.

In a hard fought battle, the Guntur-born suffered a narrow 21-18, 14-21, 19-21 defeat to World No.15 Marc.

Coming into the match with a 2-1 head-to-head record, both players started the proceeding on a good note But it was Srikanth who proved superior to clinch the first set 21-18.

In the second game, Marc broke off at 6-6 and kept his foot ahead throughout the proceedings despite some spirited game from Srikanth.

In the decider, the Indian shuttler managed to keep himself ahead for most part after opening up a 6-2 lead. However, Marc produced a spectacular performance and caught up with the Indian at 16-16 and eventually went on to bag the issue.