Go, Sindhu!

To play Intanon next; Verma plays Shi Yuqi

Guangzhou, December 14

Olympics silver medallist PV Sindhu continued her unbeaten run while Sameer Verma also qualified for the semifinals of the BWF World Tour Finals here today.

Playing the elite year-ending event for the third year in a row, Sindhu displayed deceptive strokes and precision during her 21-9 21-15 win over world No. 12 Beiwen Zhang of the USA. The one-sided win ensured that Sindhu would top Group A in the women’s section.

“I was down 2-6 initially but I picked up the lead, so after that I was fine,” Sindhu, the last edition’s runner-up, said after the match. “I have played a few matches against her after the Indian Open final, so I took it as a fresh match.” The 23-year-old Sindhu had lost to Zhang in the Indian Open final in New Delhi early this year.

“I am happy with the three wins, it is a positive thing. I hope to move forward with the same positivity and do well in the semifinals,” added Sindhu, referring to her three wins in the group state.

Verma rises

The 24-year-old Verma showed great athleticism and produced a masterful performance to demolish Thailand’s Kantaphon Wangcharoen 21-9 21-18 in a match that clocked 44 minutes.

After losing the opening match to world No. 1 and world champion Kento Momota, Verma recovered well to come up with wins over his other two opponents in Group B.

“I have played him (Wangcharoen) before at Swiss Open, so I knew how to go about it. In the second game I was losing so after some advice from my coach, I kept my patience. Now I am ready to play the semifinals,” said Verma said. “It has been a great experience playing my first World Tour Finals.”

Kento Momota topped the group beating Tommy Sugiarto 21-14 21-18 for his third straight win.

Tai Tzu Ying out with injury

Akane Yamaguchi of Japan finished second in the group after top seed Tai Tzu Ying retired early in the second game, with Yamaguchi ahead 21-17 11-12. The two-time season finale champion said a right hamstring strain had forced her to quit. “I’ve never had this injury before. I felt it during today’s match. I feel bad that the tournament ended like this for me but there was nothing I could do. I hope to recover from this and play well next season,” said Tzu Ying. — PTI

Semifinals line-up

Women’s Singles

PV Sindhu vs R Intanon 
N Okuhara vs Yamaguchi 

Men’s Singles

Sameer Verma vs Shi Yuqi
K Momota vs Son Wan Ho