PV Sindhu's campaign at the China Open Super 750 tournament has come to an end after a defeat to top-seeded An Se Young in the quarter-finals. The Indian shuttler had earlier progressed to the quarter-finals with a straight-game victory over Thailand's Pornpawee Chochuwong.
Sindhu's journey to the quarter-finals saw her defeat World No. 6 Pornpawee Chochuwong of Thailand 21-15, 21-15 in 41 minutes. This win was significant for Sindhu, as it not only secured her a place in the quarter-finals but also leveled her head-to-head record against Chochuwong at 6-5. Sindhu displayed dominance from the first game, leading 11-4 at the interval and comfortably closing it out. Although Chochuwong put up more of a fight in the second game, narrowly leading 11-10 at the interval, Sindhu seized control after the interval, winning 11 of the next 15 points to secure her victory.
After her victory against Pornpawee Chochuwong, Sindhu acknowledged the importance of alertness and giving her best from the beginning of the match. She highlighted the need to stay close to her opponent, as every point counts. Sindhu also emphasized the confidence boost that comes with straight-game wins, while also acknowledging the need to be prepared for long matches and quick footwork.
However, Sindhu's progress was halted by An Se Young, the world number one from South Korea. Prior to the match, Sindhu trailed An Se-young 7-0 in their head-to-head record. The two last met at the All England Open 2024.
Earlier in the tournament, Sindhu demonstrated her prowess by defeating Julie Dawall Jakobsen 21-4, 21-10 in just 27 minutes to enter the pre-quarterfinals.
In other events at the China Masters, India's Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also made it to the quarter-finals in the men's doubles. The duo put up a dominant performance against Chinese Taipei's Chiu Hsiang Chieh and Wang Chi-Lin with a straight-games win 21-13, 21-12 in just 33 minutes. They were set to face China's Ren Xiang Yu and Xie Haonan in the quarter-finals. Chirag Shetty expressed that confidence has been key and they are slowly getting back to where they want to be. Satwik added that the pair had sharpened their approach after errors in Hong Kong, focusing on the first four strokes – serve and receive.
