Indian shuttler PV Sindhu stormed into the semi-finals of the women’s singles event after defeating Japan’s number four seed Akane Yamaguchi in the quarterfinals here at the Musashino Forest Plaza Court 1 on Friday. Sindhu defeated Yamaguchi 21-13, 22-20.
Before this match, Sindhu and Yamaguchi had played 18 times with the Indian leading the head to head with 11 wins. The quarterfinal clash between Sindhu and Yamaguchi lasted for 56 minutes.
The first game was more close than the scoreline suggested and Sindhu had to bring out the best in her to win it 21-13. The scoreline in the first game might not indicate how closely it was fought, but Yamaguchi made her fight for every point. Yamaguchi matched the Indian’s smashes with aplomb.
It was after the mid game interval that Sindhu raced away with a flurry of points by virtue of the unforced errors committed by Yamaguchi. The star Indian shuttler was just one more game away from progressing to the semi-finals.
Yamaguchi made Sindhu toil hard in the second game, and for every point, the Indian shuttler had to be at her best. In the end, the number six seed Sindhu ended up winning the match in straight games.
In the second game of the quarter-final, there was a 54-shot rally between Sindhu and Yamaguchi and it lasted for one minute and two seconds.
On Thursday, Sindhu had defeated Denmark’s Mia Blichfeldt in the Round of 16 match of women’s individual event in the Tokyo Olympics here at the Musashino Forest Plaza Court 3. Sindhu defeated Blichfeldt 21-15, 21-13 in just 41 minutes to cruise into the quarter-finals. Next Sindhu will face the world no. 1 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei.
