Kowloon (Hong Kong), Nov 25: Shuttler PV Sindhu entered the semifinals of the Hong Kong Super Series badminton tournament after posting a hard-fought victory over Singapore’s Xiaoyu Liang even as Saina Nehwal bowed out suffering a quarterfinal defeat here Friday.
Had the former World No. 1 and London Olympics bronze medallist, Saina won her match, she would have met Sindhu in an all-Indian battle in the semifinals. The only time the two had clashed was at the 2014 India Grand Prix Gold and it was Saina who had the last laugh in a two-game match.
Sindhu taking the court before Saina, staved off a stiff challenge from Xiaoyu Liang 21-17, 21-23, 21-18 in a quarterfinal match that lasted an hour and 19 minutes at the Hong Kong Coliseum. This is the 11th (seven at the China Open and four here) successive match that Sindhu has won on the circuit making her the first Indian to achieve the feat.
In a match where fortunes swung like a pendulum, Sindhu’s better shot selection and cool nerves at crucial junctures helped her clinch the issue.
All the three games, brought out the best among the two contesting shuttlers. The Singapore shuttler’s never-say-die attitude helped her claw back into the match as she saved two match points in the second game. Sindhu was up 20-19 and 21-20, but on both occasions Liang came up with two powerful smashes to restore parity. She won the second game when Sindhu’s backhand flick went long.
In the third game, Sindhu was up 7-4 and 11-7. However, after the interval, Liang caught up at 14-all. However, Sindhu did not lose her nerves and came up with two superb dribbles at the net to lead 16-14. She never gave up the lead even though Liang tried her best to catch up.
Fifth-seeded Saina, meanwhile, failed to cross the hurdle as she was stunned by unseeded local shuttler Cheung Ngan Yi 8-21, 21-18, 19-21 in a contest that lasted 71 minutes. The Indian had earlier beaten Cheung at the World Championships last year.
Meanwhile, Sameer Verma reached the semifinals of the men’s singles after getting the better of Malaysia’s Chong Wei Feng 21-17, 23-21. However, it was curtains for Ajay Jayaram as he lost his quarterfinal match to NG Ka Long Angus of Hong Kong 15-21, 14-21.
Press Trust of India
