Paris: India shuttler PV Sindhu marched into the Round of 16 of badminton women’s singles event after beating Kristin Kuuba of Estonia in the final Group M match at the ongoing Paris Olympics on Wednesday.
Sindhu dominated over Kuuba and won the match 21-5, 21-10 in a 34-minute contest at the La Chapelle Arena.
In the first game, Sindhu controlled the momentum and clinched a 21-5 win in just 14 minutes. Meanwhile, The Indian shuttler continued her form and won the second game 21-10 in 19 minutes.
Sindhu could potentially face the China’s He Bingjiao in her upcoming Round of 16 match. Earlier in the Tokyo Olympics, Sindhu beat He Bingjiao to secure her bronze.
Earlier in Sindhu’s previous Group M match, the Indian shuttler began her quest for her third Olympic medal with a straightforward win against the Maldives’ Fathimath Nabaaha Abdul Razzaq in the women’s singles event. Sindhu displayed grit and confidence and restricted her opponent to single digits in both games. She began her campaign with a 21-9, 21-6 win in a game that lasted for 29 minutes.
In the hunt for her third Olympic medal, Sindhu didn’t waste any time in establishing her dominance. She used every inch of the badminton court to her advantage and lured her opponent into playing a loose shot.
This was the second time Sindhu and Razzaq had faced each other. The Indian shuttler breezed past the Maldives shuttler in their first encounter, and once again, history repeated itself in Paris.
The first game began with both shuttlers going neck-to-neck against each other. Sindhu took a point lead, and Razzaq fought back to level the scoreline.
The trend lasted till the scoreboard read 4-4. Sindhu upped her game and went on a spree, which saw her claim ten points in a row.
Razzaq eventually managed to break Sindhu’s 10-point spree, but the first game was almost out of her hands.
An angled flick from Sindhu, showcasing her class, made the scoreline 19-6 in her favour. Razzaq fought back, fighting hard for a late comeback by winning three consecutive points. An exquisite drop shot made the scoreline 19-9.
Sindhu eventually sealed the first game in 13 minutes with a scoreline of 21-9. The second game was a similar story for the Maldives shuttler. She failed to overcome Sindhu’s technical prowess.
Within a blink of an eye, the Indian shuttler clinched three consecutive points before her shot was stopped by the net. This opened a window of opportunity for Razzaq to make a comeback and she exploited it to its best. She won three consecutive points, making the scoreline 4-3, leaving her just a point behind Sindhu.
However, the short-lived rallies didn’t do any favour for Razzaq as she eventually started to trail just like in the first set. Razzaq’s defence didn’t do her any favour, allowing Sindhu to seal the match following a 21-6 win in the second game.
Disappointing loss
Star India shuttler Ashwini Ponnappa announced her retirement from the Olympics after a disappointing loss in their Group C badminton women’s team match against Australia’s Setyana Mapasa and Angela Yu at the multi-sport event. After the match, Ponnappa said that it takes a lot of emotional and mental strength to go through it. The Indian shuttler added she can’t take it anymore.
“It takes a toll emotionally and mentally, I can’t go through this again. It is not easy, you can take all these if you are a little younger. Having played for so long, I can’t take it anymore,” Ponnappa was quoted by Olympics.com as saying.
In the women’s team event, the Indian women’s duo of Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto succumbed to their third consecutive defeat in Group C to finish fourth and crash out in the group stage.
They endured defeat against the Australian duo of Setyana Mapasa and Angela Yu 15-21, 10-21 in straight games on Tuesday. The Indian women’s duo struggled throughout their outing against the Australian team.
Rankireddy, Shetty enter quarters
Meanwhile, India’s star men’s duo Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty punched their ticket for the quarter-finals of badminton doubles with a straight-game win over Indonesia’s Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto on Tuesday at the Paris Olympics.
The Indian pair, which is ranked No 3, reached the knockout stage as the Group C leaders. Satwik and Chirag dominated the All-England winners and clinched 21-13, 21-13 win in a game that lasted 40 minutes.
The Indian duo worked hard for each point to register a comfortable victory. The Indian duo raced to a 5-3 lead early in the first game but the Indonesian pair bounded back by taking two consecutive points and levelling the scoreline 5-5.
It became a back-and-forth affair, but the Indian duo upped their game and eventually took a four-point lead, making the scoreline 15-11. The duo didn’t look back and raced to a 21-13 win in the first game.
The second game was a similar story, with both pairs going neck-to-neck for each point. After 11-8, the Indian star duo took six consecutive points to take a step closer to the knockout stage. The relentless, aggressive attack continued as they launched a flurry of shots to seal the game.
