Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu stunned World No. 2 Wang Zhi Yi of China to storm into the quarter-finals of the World Championships, while the doubles pairing of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto pulled off a shock win over fifth seeds Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet, here Thursday.
The 15th ranked Sindhu, who won the world title in Basel in 2019, took 48 minutes to prevail 21-19, 21-15 in the pre-quarterfinals to lead head-to-head record against the Chinese 3-2.
Wang Zhi Yi
Sindhu will now face World No. 9 Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in the quarter-finals. She is now just one victory away from securing a record-equalling sixth World Championships medal.
“When I stepped onto the court, she was like any other player for me. I knew it’s not going to be easy from Round One in a World Championship. You have to fight for every point, every rally. I wanted to give my 100 per cent,” Sindhu said.
Solid start
A five-time World Championships medallist, Sindhu made a bright start in the opening game, racing to an 11-6 lead at the mid-game interval with a flurry of sharp smashes and net winners. Wang fought back strongly to level at 19-19, but the Indian held her nerves to pocket the game.
“Of course, Wang Zhi Yi is a very good athlete, but it was not in my mind. I knew there would be long rallies… even though I was leading, she didn’t give up. I was prepared for her pace changes, the tough smashes, and I was always quick on my feet,” Sindhu said.
Sindhu extended her remarkable record against Chinese shuttlers at the Worlds, having previously beaten Wang Yihan (2013), Wang Shixian (2014), Li Xuerui (2015), Sun Yu (2017) and Chen Yufei (2017 and 2019) in earlier editions.
Big win for Dhruv-Tanisha
Dhruv and Tanisha also pulled off a big upset by stunning Hong Kong World No. 5 pairing of Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet 19-21, 21-12, 21-15 to storm into the quarter-finals.
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