BWF World C’ships | Day 5: PV Sindhu Beats Okuhara, Enters Semis
Highlights from Day 5 of the Badminton World Championships in Nanjing in China.
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- PV Sindhu beat Nozomi Okuhara to enter the semi-finals.
- Sai Praneeth crashes out after losing against Kento Momota in quarters.
- Saina Nehwal loses against Carolina Marin in quarters.
- Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa make a quarter-final exit after losing to Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong in mixed doubles.
SINDHU ADVANCES TO SEMIS!
Sindhu beat Okuhara 21-17, 21-19 to reach the semi-finals of the BWF World Championships. The highlight of the match was Sindhu’s comebacks, apart from the series of rally.
In the semis, third-seed Sindhu will meet second-seed Akane Yamaguchi from Japan.
In earlier editions, Sindhu has two bronze medals and a silver medal from three appearances. But this time she would like to win the Gold.
Sindhu-Okuhara Playing a Thriller
Sindhu making good use of her height to smash some deep shots. But Okuhara not giving up. The score is tied 17-17 in the second game
Sindhu Not Giving Up
After going 5-0 up, unforced errors from Okuhara let Sindhu level 11-11 in the second game. Great comeback by Sindhu. In the process, Sindhu took five consecutive points.
Okuhara Takes 3-point Lead
At halfway mark in the second game, Okuhara lead 11-8 against Sindhu.
Sindhu Takes The First Game
After a good start from Okuhara, Sindhu came right back into the game by forcing the Japanese to make errors. Sindhu covered the entire court to negate Okuhara’s game. The first game lasted for 25 minutes.
Sindhu Back in The Game
Sindhu has her nose ahead with a three-point lead.
Sindhu, Okuhara Fighting it Out
After taking an early lead, Okuhara squandered chances to let Sindhu make a comeback. The Japanese has made a couple of errors in her judgement.
Sindhu's Quarter-final Match Underway
Sindhu is the sole Indian left in the competition. The Indian shuttler will look to win against Okuhara to lead the charge for India.
SAI PRANEETH BOWS OUT!
Sai Praneeth crashes out of the championship after losing 12-21, 12 -21 in quarter-final match against Kento Momota.
Praneeth's Struggle Continues
The Indian got off to a great start but lost momentum as Momota started playing his A game to take the lead.
First Game to Momota
Momota was in complete control of his game. With eight consecutive points, the Japanese completely dominated Praneeth. Errors from Praneeth contributed to his downfall.
Momota on Fire Against Praneeth
The Japenese takes an 11-point lead with some attacking shots across the court. India’s Praneeth has no answer for the World number 7.
Momota 19 - 8 Praneeth
Momota Takes 6-point Lead
At the halfway mark in the first game Praneeth trail Momota 5-11. Momota scored 5 consecutive points in this period.
Sai Praneeth in Action
Sai Praneeth’s quarter-final match against Japan’s Kento Momota is underway. Praneeth is currently world number 26 whereas Momota is world number 7. This is the first time that Praneeth has made it to the Top 8 of the World Championships
Sindhu & Praneeth Yet to Play
Sindhu and Praneeth also have their quarter-final matches later in the day today.
PV Sindhu will take on Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara in the fourth women’s singles quarter-final of the day. The match will begin around 6.00 pm.
Sai Praneeth will play Kento Momota in the men’s singles quarter-final. Praneeth’s match will start around 5.30 pm.
Saina Nehwal Crashes Out!
Saina again makes a quarter-final exit from the championship. Marin was in complete control of the match right from the start. Saina had a brief period of comeback just before the break but couldn’t sustain the momentum. Saina lost 6-21, 11-21 to Carolina Marin for the fifth time.
In the entire match, Carolina Marin was always one step ahead of Saina. The Indian shuttler looked completely out of sorts. While Saina was failing to return the wide shots, she continued to hit wide.
With this win the Saina-Marin head-to-head count is now tied at 5-5.
Carolina Marin will now face He Bing Jiao in the semifinal on Saturday.
Marin Takes a 7-Point Lead
The southpaw looks to be in her best form in this match. Marin 16 - 9 Saina.
Saina Wins Two Consecutive Points
Saina slowly pulling things back in the second game. After trailing 3-8, at break Saina trails Marin by three points at 8-11.
Saina Has No Answer For Marin
Same story in Game 2. Saina not stretching enough while Marin continues with her ruthless smashes. Marin leads by four points at 7-3.
Carolina Marin Takes The 1st Game 21-16
The Spaniard completely owned the first game of her quarter-final match against Saina Nehwal. Despite Saina’s defensive tactics, Marin outplayed her with her ruthless shots to get an easy win in the first game.
In the process, Carolina won eight consecutive points.
Marin Surging Ahead With 11-Point Lead
Carolina Marin is playing on wide areas and Saina doing her best to reach it but without any success. Marin 15 - 4 Saina.
Strong Start From Marin
Marin making good use of Saina’s defensive approach. Both began with an excellent rally but Marin surging ahead with 11-2 at the break in the first half.
Marin scored six consecutive points.
Saina Nehwal in Action
Saina Nehwal’s quarter-final match against Spain’s Carolina Marin underway. In head-to-head count Saina enjoys a slight advantage with five wins against Marin’s four.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa Crash Out
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa lose in their quarter-final match to Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong 17-21, 10-21.
Recap of Day 2
Olympic medallists Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu sailed into the women's singles quarterfinals with straight-game wins but it was curtains for Kidambi Srikanth at the BWF Badminton World Championships.
Saina, who had clinched a silver and a bronze at the 2015 and 2017 editions, downed 2013 champion Ratchanok Inthanon of Thailand 21-16 21-19 to set up a meeting with Olympic champion and two-time world champion, Carolina Marin of Spain.
Later in the day, last edition's silver medallist Sindhu, seeded third, eased past ninth seed Ji Hyun Sung of Korea 21-10 21-18 in another third round clash.
Sindhu will next play eight seed Nozomi Okuhara of Japan, a rival against whom she lost in the summit clash of the tournament last year.
B Sai Praneeth also eased into the men's singles quarterfinals with a comfortable 21-13 21-11 win over Denmark's Hans-Kristian Solberg Vittinghus. He will next take on sixth seed Kento Momoto.
The Indian mixed doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa also stood one step away from a medal after pulling off a stunning 20-22 21-14 21-6 victory over the Malaysian world no.7 combination of Goh Soon Huat and Shevon Jemie Lai.
Day 5 of BWF World Championships
Good morning and welcome to the coverage of Day 5 of the BWF World Championships in China. Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu will be the only Indian players in the women’s singles draw in action today. Among the men B Sai Praneeth will be looking to make it to the semi-finals of their single draw.
Indians in Action (Singles)
- Saina Nehwal vs Carolina Marin – 10.30 am
- PV Sindhu vs Nozomi Okuhara – 6.00 pm (tentatively)
- Sai Praneeth vs Kento Momota – 5.30 pm (tentatively)
Indians in Action (Singles)
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa vs Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong - 10.00 am
Stay tuned for live highlights through the day.
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