Srikanth Kidambi of India poses during the awarding ceremony after the men's singles final match against Sakai Kuzumasa of Japan at Indonesia Open 2017 in Jakarta, Indonesia, June 18, 2017. Srikanth Kidambi won 2-0 to claim the title. (Xinhua/Veri Sanovri)
JAKARTA, June 18 (Xinhua) -- Indian shuttler Srikanth Kidambi won the men's singles title of the Indonesia Open Super Series here on Sunday, beating Japan's Kazumasa Sakai 21-11, 21-19 in the final and taking 75,000 U.S. dollars of rewards.
Kidambi showed his superiority in the 37-minute match with his deadly shuttlecock placements in his opponent's lawn.
The victory in Jakarta's landmark convention center of JCC made Kidambi the first Indian men's singles player to win the tournament.
"The results have made us very proud. I am also proud of Prannoy who can make it to the semifinals. We would work harder to prepare our players in further international tournaments in the future," Mulyo Handoyo, an Indonesian coach who trained Indian team, told a press conference on the sidelines of the match.
Sakai said that Kidambi deserved to win with his strong physique and strong smash hits during the match.
Kidambi was the only Indian player who made it to the finals after his compatriot Prannoy Haseena Sunil failed to Sakai in the semifinals. The non-seeded Prannoy defeated the defending champion Lee Chong Wei and Rio Olympics champion Chen Long to get to semifinals.
Kidambi himself championed 2104 China Open super series after defeated China's star Lin Dan in the final match.
