Guwahati: Chih Shen Chen, the head of the Badminton Asia Technical Committee has apologised to two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu for the referee’s “human error” in the women’s singles semifinal of the Badminton Asia Championships in April.
The mistake occurred in Sindhu’s match against Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, which she lost in three games and had to settle for third place. After winning the first game, the Indian shuttler was up 14-11 in the second. For taking too long to serve between points, the umpire docked Sindhu one point.
The Olympic medalist lost her momentum as a result, and she was defeated by Yamaguchi 21-13, 19-21, and 16-21. Sindhu started crying after the incident.
The chairman of the Badminton Asia Technical Committee has since apologised to the 27-year-old and stated that the appropriate precautions have been taken to prevent future instances of such human mistake.
“Sadly, there is currently no way to correct the situation. We have, however, taken the appropriate precautions to prevent a recurrence of this human error.”
“We sincerely regret any inconvenience this has given you. We think it belongs to the sport and is recognised as such, “Shen Chen stated.
In a previous comment, Sindhu discussed the incident and said that it was one of the factors in her defeat against Yamaguchi and that the punishment was unjust. She said that she could have guaranteed a place in the final if the error hadn’t occurred.
“The umpire informed me that although the opponent wasn’t yet prepared, you were taking a long time. However, the umpire abruptly awarded her the point, which was incredibly unfair. That, I believe, was one of the factors in my defeat.”
“That is how I felt at the time because the score was 14-11 and could have easily changed to 15-11, but it remained 14-11 and she continued to score. And I believe it was incredibly unfair. I might have won the game and participated in the championship, “Sindhu stated.