P V Sindhu's gallant attempt to win a coveted gold medal for India ended in heart-break when she went down fighting against Spain's Carolina Marin and settled for a silver in the women's singles badminton competition of the Rio Olympics on Friday.

The 21-year-old Indian crumbled under the relentless pressure created by Marin to lose 21-19, 12-21, 15-21 in a pulsating final that lasted for an hour and 23 minutes at the Rio Centre.

Sindhu thus became the fourth Indian to win a silver at the Olympics after shooters Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore (2004, Athens), Vijay Kumar (2012, London) and wrestler Sushil Kumar (2012, London).