Praneeth overcomes Christie challenge to win Thailand Open

Ace Indian shuttler B. Sai Praneeth produced a spirited performance as he bounced back from a game down against fourth-seed Jonathan Christie of Indonesia to clinch Thailand Open title here on Sunday.

After losing the first game, the third-seeded rebounded strongly to register a 17-21, 21-18, 21-19 triumph over his Indonesian opponent Christie in an exhilarating summit showdown of the men's singles event that lasted one hour and 17 minutes.

On his way to the finals, Praneeth had registered a comfortable 21-11, 21-15 win over Pannawit Thongnuam of host nation in the last-four clash that lasted just 36 minutes.

Last month, Praneeth fended off his fellow countryman Kidambi Srikanth in all-Indian men's singles final to lift his first ever Super Series title at the Singapore Open. He posted a 17-21, 21-17, 21-12 win over Srikanth in a thrilling summit showdown.

Meanwhile, ace shuttler Saina Nehwal had yesterday crashed out in the semi-finals after losing to Busanan Ongbamrumphan 21-19, 21-18.