Swiss Open: Impressive HS Prannoy is champion

Basel: Up and coming shuttler H.S. Prannoy clinched his second Grand Prix Gold badminton tournament title by notching up a straight game victory over Marc Zwiebler of Germany in the summit clash of the Swiss Open here on Sunday.

Seeded 13th in the $120,000 tournament, Prannoy outclassed seventh seeded Zwiebler 21-18, 21-15 in a 45-minute final. The 23-year-old Prannoy, who had won the Indonesia Open Grand Prix Gold in 2014, had been in fine touch with wins over higher-ranked players, including Rajiv Ouseph of England, in this tournament.

Prannoy began the match on a confident note and surged to a 7-4 lead in the first game before the German, ranked 19th as compared to the Indian’s 27th, fought his way back into the match.

The two rivals were tied at 18-18 and it was from there that the Indian took three straight points at a crucial juncture to take the opening game 21-18.
With the opening game in his pocket, Prannoy grew in confidence as he outclassed his German rival.