Indian shuttler Malvika Bansod on Sunday lost to Denmark’s Mia Blichfeldt in the finals of the Hylo Open 2024 badminton tournament in Saarbrücken, Germany. Seeded sixth at the BWF Super 300 tournament, Bansod fell to Blichfeldt, the seventh seed, with a scoreline of 21-10, 21-15.
On Saturday, Bansod had defeated another Danish player, Julie Dawall Jakobsen, becoming only the third Indian woman, after Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu, to reach the final of a BWF World Tour tournament abroad. This match marked the 23-year-old Bansod’s second final appearance on the BWF World Tour, following her runners-up finish to PV Sindhu at the Syed Modi International BWF Super 300 event two years ago.
Ranked 34th in the world badminton rankings, Bansod showcased some deft touches in the early exchanges, leveling the score with world No. 36 Blichfeldt at 9-9. However, the momentum shifted dramatically from that point, as the Dane stepped up a gear and took 12 of the next 13 points.
Bansod struggled to cope with her opponent’s powerful returns in the second half of the opening game. The second game saw a stiffer fight from the Indian, who, aided by a couple of unforced errors from Blichfeldt, led by a couple of points at the halfway interval. However, just as she had in the first game, Blichfeldt increased the intensity after the restart and proceeded to close out the match in 43 minutes.
Last year, Malvika Bansod made it to the quarter-finals at the Hylo Open. Paris 2024 Olympics semi-finalist Lakshya Sen was the last Indian to win a title at the Hylo Open, back in 2019.