New Delhi: Former champions P V Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth stayed on course to reclaim titles while a vintage Parupalli Kashyap too regained some form, sealing his place in the men’s singles semifinals of the USD 350,000 India Open here Friday.
Sindhu, a 2017 champion and 2016 finalist, edged out Denmark’s eighth seed Mia Blichfeldt 21-19 22-20 in a closely-fought contest to set up a clash with China’s He Bingjiao on Saturday. “I should have finished it earlier. I made too many errors. He Bingjiao and she is a tricky player. I have to be more patient,” Sindhu said. Srikanth finally snapped his series of quarterfinal finishes, outwitting compatriot B Sai Praneeth 21-23 21-11 21-19 in a 62 minute pulsating contest, while Kashyap entered his first semifinals of a top-tier event (World Tour Super 500 or Superseries) in almost four years, beating Chinese Taipei’s Wang Tzu Wei 21-16 21-11.
Srikanth will face China’s Huang Yuxiang, while Kashyap takes on former world champion and former world no 1 Viktor Axelsen. H S Prannoy couldn’t match up with the second seeded Axelsen, going down 10-21 16-21 in a match that had some tight fights in the second game. (PTI)
