PARIS, Aug 27: Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu once again relied on a late surge to overcome Malaysia’s world No. 40 Letshanaa Karupathevan and reach the women’s singles pre-quarterfinals of the BWF World Championships here on Wednesday.
The former world champion, who had survived a scare in the opening round too, rallied from 12-18 down in the first game to register a 21-19 21-15 victory in 42 minutes.
It was a case of déjà vu for Sindhu, who had looked sluggish against Bulgaria’s Kaloyana Nalbantova in her opener on Tuesday. Against Letshanaa too, she struggled to find her rhythm early and trailed throughout, unable to build pressure on the Malaysian’s defence.
Letshanaa started aggressively against Sindhu, firing a smash to the Indian’s forehand flank that went unanswered before following it up with a delicate drop that kissed the line. Sindhu struggled to find her rhythm and trailed 1-4.
Technically sound and physically strong, Letshanaa’s faster, attacking game exposed Sindhu’s inconsistency as the Indian slipped behind further. At 18-12, the Malaysian looked firmly in control.
But Sindhu clawed her way back into the contest.
With six straight points, she levelled the score at 18-all, aided by an error from Letshanaa, who sent a smash wide under pressure.
Sindhu kept her composure at 19-19, producing a clean smash to grab the game point, which was also the first time she lead in the game.
Sindhu looked in command, her smashes finding range and her variations troubling the Malaysian, who kept fighting before the Indian grabbed seven match points following a couple of long shots from Letshanaa.
MIXED DOUBLES PAIR ADVANCES
Indian mixed doubles pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto entered the pre-quarterfinals of the World Championships with a straight-game win over Ireland’s Joshua Magee and Moya Ryan, here on Wednesday.
Seeded 16th, Dhruv and Tanisha dominated the proceedings to outwit the Irish duo 21-11, 21-16 in just 35 minutes.
The Indians will next face fifth seeds Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet of Hong Kong for a place in the quarterfinals.
SATWIK-CHIRAG DUO PROGRESS
In men’s doubles, Satwik and Chirag showcased their trademark attacking prowess and delivered some venomous smashes from the backcourt.
The Indians committed quite a few service errors and were guilty of giving away the attack.
Their opponents were equally up for the task especially in the first part of the opening game as the two pairs moved and neck and neck till the break.After resumption, the Indian duo tightened its game and slowly opened up a handy four-point cushion at 20-16.
However, the Taipei duo reeled off four straight points, including the Yang Po Han’s stunning behind-the-back shot that creeped over the net, to level the contest at 20-all.
Chirag then produced a steep downward return that earned the Indians another game point, and this time they made no mistake, converting it to seal the opener 22-20.
After the change of ends, the Indians opened up a 6-3 lead but Liu and Yang kept making things difficult as Satwik and Chirag managed to take a two-point cushion at the break.
After a pep talk from coach Tan Kim Her in the interval, the Indians managed to win a series of quick points to take a 16-10 lead.
It was all India thereafter as Satwik and Chirag grabbed seven match points after winning a crucial referral and converted quickly to seal the match. (PTI)