Sindhu conquers Chen to set up Indonesia finale vs Yamaguchi

Jakarta: PV Sindhu stormed into the final of the Indonesian Open after beating China’s Chen Yu Fei 21-19, 21-10 in the semi-final in Jakarta on Saturday.

She will now face Japanese fourth seed Akane Yamaguchi in the final on Sunday. Both players will be playing for their first ever Super 1000 title.

Sindhu had reached the semis after flattening Japanese number three seed Nozomi Okuhara 21-14, 21-7 while Chen beat USA’s Beiwen Zhang 21-14, 17-21, 21-16 in her quarter final match.

The semi-final tie between the two players lasted 46 minutes involving two games that stood in stark contrast to each other. While the first game was a close affair, the second was a stroll for Sindhu.

Sindhu was trailing 4-8 in the first game before winning five consecutive points to take the lead. At the first interval, she led the game 11-10. Chen then built a lead again but Sindhu fought back from 18-14 and won another five points in a row. She went on to win the game 21-19.

Sindhu lost the first four points of the second game but once she adjusted to the change in drift, the Indian raced to a 9-5 lead. At the interval, she was leading 11-8 and she extended that lead to 17-8 before Chen could get another point. The final score of 21-10 was only a confirmation of Sindhu’s dominance.

Earlier, Yamaguchi soundly beat Taiwan’s world number one Tai Tzu-ying to reach the final.

Yamaguchi defeated an out-of-sorts Tai 21-9, 21-15 in a little over 30 minutes at Jakarta’s Istora Senayan Stadium.

“This is my first Indonesian Open final -- I’m very happy,” Yamaguchi said after the match.

The 25-year-old Tai said she was not feeling well and was unable to play at her best.

“Today I couldn’t play at my usual speed,” Tai said. “So my performance was hampered a little.”

In the men’s singles, world number three Chou Tien-chen of Taiwan proved to be too strong for young Thai shuttler Kantaphon Wangcharoen, beating him 21-19, 18-21, 21-16. Chou will play either Wong Wing Ki Vincent of Hong Kong or Denmark’s Anders Antonsen in tomorrow’s final.

In the men’s doubles, Indonesian pair Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan beat Japan’s Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi 17-21, 21-19, 21-17, setting up an all-Indonesian final with Marcus Gideon and Kevin Sukamuljo.

Diminutive duo Gideon and Sukamuljo looked in ominous form against Li Jun Hui and Liu Yu Chen of China, crushing them 21-9, 21-13.

Agencies