New Delhi, Mar 19 (IANS): Two-time Olympic medallist P.V. Sindhu congratulated Caroline Marin on winning the All-England Open women’s singles title and shared an off-court smile and friendship with the Spanish star. Carolina Marin ended a nine-year wait for a second women’s singles title at the All-England after Akane Yamaguchi was forced to retire in the final on Sunday. The Spaniard was leading 26-24, 11-1 when her Japanese opponent withdrew because of a hip injury.

Sindhu, went down to the world No. 1 Korean shuttler 21-19, 21-11 in the Round of 16 of the BWF Super 1000 event.

Sindhu, who won silver in the Rio Olympic Games 2016 losing to Carolina Marin in the final and then bagged a bronze medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, in a social media post on Instagram congratulated Marin on her title win and shared an off-court smile and friendship with her.

“We wage war every time we play, but off the court, the smiles and friendships persist, as they always should,” Sindhu wrote in a post on Instagram. “Always wonderful to cross paths with you, dear friend! Congratulations on all of England,” she added.

Sindhu and Marin faced each other back in November 2023 in the Denmark Open Super 750 tournament in Odense, however, Sindhu lost the match 18-21, 21-19, 7-21 in the semifinals.