Indonesia Open: PV Sindhu falls to Olympic champion An Seyoung in second round
Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu exited the Indonesia Open after a straight-games defeat to world No. 1 and reigning Olympic champion An Seyoung in the second round.
Former champion PV Sindhu and the mixed doubles duo of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto registered stunning victories to storm into the quarterfinals of the BWF Badminton World Championships in Paris on Thursday.
Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medalist, produced a vintage performance to upset World No. 2 Wang Zhi Yi of China 21-19, 21-15 and book her place in the women’s singles quarterfinals. Ranked 15th, Sindhu, a winner of the 2019 world title in Basel, needed just 48 minutes to complete the straight-games win.
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A five-time World Championships medallist, Sindhu started strongly with crisp attacking strokes to take the opening game 21-19, while Wang appeared tentative in her returns. The Indian carried that momentum into the second, dictating rallies with her aggression before sealing the contest and extending her head-to-head record against the Chinese star to 3-2. The victory leaves Sindhu just one win away from securing a record-extending sixth World Championships medal.
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The 29-year-old from Hyderabad will face ninth seed Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in Friday’s quarterfinal. Their head-to-head stands level at 2-2.
Sindhu entered the match as the underdog, having endured a spate of first-round exits this season that raised doubts over her ability to challenge the elite. But on the Paris courts, she rediscovered her attacking best, reminding the world of her pedigree on the biggest stage.
Dhruv-Tanisha script history bid
Earlier in the day, India’s mixed doubles pair Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto pulled off a sensational comeback to upset World No.5 duo Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet of Hong Kong 19-21, 21-12, 21-15 in 63 minutes.
“We prepared better this time. More importantly, we didn’t give up. Even after losing the first game, we fought back harder in the next two and kept pushing each other till the end. That was the real game changer,” Tanisha said after the win over the reigning Asian champions and two-time World Championships bronze medallists.
The Indian duo is now just one step away from becoming the country’s first-ever mixed doubles medal winners at the Worlds. They next face Malaysia’s Chen Tang Jie and Toh Ee Wei in the quarterfinals.
Later in the day, men’s doubles top pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty were slated to meet China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang in their round of 16 clash.
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