Tokyo: World No. 7 PV Sindhu booked her spot in the semi-final of the women’s singles badminton event in the Tokyo Olympics after beating Akane Yamaguchi of Japan (21-13, 22-20) in straight games in the quarter-final here on Friday. Sindhu will now take on World No. 1 Tai Tzu-Ying of Chinese Taipei on Saturday in what promises to be another exhilarating contest. Sindhu, who has won all her matches in straight games in Tokyo Olympics so far, will be for the first time playing an opponent who has got a better head-to-head-record against her.
The Chinese Taipei shuttler, who had also maintained a clean sheet in the group stages, dropped a game in her quarter-final clash against the No. 5 seed Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand. She eventually came back strong to win the match 14-21, 21-18, 21-18 against Intanon.
Having played against each other in as many as 18 matches, the 27-year-old Chinese Taipei shuttler holds a healthy 13-5 lead against the Indian shuttler. Tai Tzu would be more than confident going into the semi-final clash against Sindhu with the odds heavily in her favour, who had also won her last three encounters against the 26-year-old Indian.
But, at the same time, Tai Tzu would also be well aware of the fact that if anybody can pose a significant risk in her advancing to the finals, it is none other than the No. 6 seed Sindhu. The Indian shuttler has been in great form in the Tokyo Olympics and is yet to drop a game in her four matches.
All said and done, the semi-final clash will be a high-pressure contest where the previous records will hold little value and given Sindhu’s recent form, she will fancy her chances against the Chinese Taipei shuttler.
By Shivam Urkude || Earth Indian
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