Sindhu not to defend Malaysia GP Gold title

P.V. Sindhu, World No.9 shuttler, will not be defending her women's singles title at the $120,000 Malaysia Grand Prix Gold being held at Johor Bahru March 25-30.

The World Championship bronze medallist won her first Grand Prix title last year in May when the tournament was held in Kuala Lumpur. She then went on to add the Macau Open Grand Prix Gold crown to her resume later in December.

"Sindhu will not be playing in Malaysia. She is playing back-to-back tournaments. Having played in the All England Open, she is now at the Swiss Open and she will need time to recoup to prepare for the India Open," Sindhu's father P.V. Ramana told IANS from Hyderabad Tuesday.

The $250,000 India Open Super Series is scheduled to be held here April 1-6. The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has tweaked the 2014 calendar, Malaysia GP Gold preceding the India Open instead of in May.

"The calendar is quite tight this year, the Commonwealth and Asian Games adding to it. In the end, it is the decision of chief national coach Pullela Gopichand to prepare the training and competition schedule for Sindhu," Ramana said.

Ramana added that after the India Open, Sindhu will play in the $300,000 Singapore Open Super Series April 8-13.

The 18-year-old Hyderabadi is currently in Basel playing in the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold where she is seeded seventh.