No 1 Son tames Srikanth to reach 1st world badminton semis

This will surely cheer up the poster girl of Indian badminton, who went through a very tough period since August last when she limped out of Rio Olympics.

“Today I am really happy with my performance because this is my first semi-final”, said Son. The 21-14, 21-9 verdict in just 39 minutes ensured India a medal at the World Championships for the fifth time in a row.

For long the pairing of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponappa has been the sole Indian hope for a doubles medal at major badminton tournaments.

Okuhara’s fast-paced game also curbed Sindhu’s aggressive strokes, denting the Indian’s chances of scoring winners. She will face the world junior champion Chen Yufei in the semi-finals today.

Sensing the urgency, Sindhu decided not to involve in the rallies and she stepped up a gear to bring her aggressive game.

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Commenting about her next encounter with Chen, Sindhu said: “She is a good player and she is playing well”. Her smashes were powerful and overpowered the opponent by the brilliant cover up on the net. Sindhu made some sound judgements at the baseline and tried to be patient on the court to extend the lead to 9-3. Then it seemed Sindhu had done the job but Okuhara thought otherwise. She took some time to get back to her rhythm and by June, Okuhara had started looking the force she once used to be which culminated in her Australian Open title win. But Sindhu pushed the limit and got a yellow card as warning from the umpire.

After the break, Okuhara seemed to vary the pace and Saina too faltered with a forehand and backhand return which helped the Japanese take a 14-11 lead.

Sindhu began the second game strongly and raced to an early 5-1 lead and though Okuhara kept fighting back, Sindhu went into the break with a three-point cushion.

The result: Sindhu gave away a big lead to eventually lose the game. But the Spaniard once again proved to be an Indian’s undoing as Nehwal settled for an unprecedented silver following a 21-16, 21-19 defeat.