Kidambi Srikanth wins Australian Open Super Series; BAI announces reward

Sydney: Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth continued his dominance even in the final of Australian Open Super Series men's singles here as he lifted the trophy on Sunday to make his country proud.

Srikanth took less than half-an-hour to thump Chinese Cheng Long in straight games 22-20, 21-16. With this memorable victory, the Indian shuttler has become only the sixth badminton player across the world to make it to three Super Series finals on the trot. He had won the Indonesian Open only last week.

In a bid to boost his morale, the Badminton Association of India (BAI) announced a cash award of Rs 5 lakh for his achievement. To mark the historic moment, BAI president Himanta Biswa Sarma announced the price amount.

Also Read: Shuttler Kidambi Srikanth forays into Australian Open final

The victory tasted sweeter because the Indian shuttler has defeated current Olympic champion Chen Long of China.

Congratulating Srikanth, a very delighted Sarma said, "We are really very proud of Srikanth for his achievements. It is simply phenomenal. He has not only made the whole country proud once again but has etched his name among the best and no word would enough to praise Srikanth."

Apart from Srikanth, the other Indian players Sai Praneeth, PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal also performed well in the Australian Open Super Series as they all qualified for the quarterfinals.