A gruelling second game and a determined comeback from PV Sindhu remained the highlight of the China Open 2016 superseries women's semifinal match on Saturday. The 21-year-old Indian shuttler, who made the entire nation proud after a fairytale campaign in the Rio 2016 Olympics, battled past Sung Ji Hyun of South Korea 11-21, 23-21, 21-19.
Click here to watch PV Sindhu vs Sun Yu final live
If the first game of their match ended comfortably in favour of Sung in 15 minutes with a 21-11 result, it was the second game that did most of the talking. At one point, Sindhu was trailing 7-10 and it was then that she bought every weapon possible from her arsenal to level the scores 11-11.
Here is the live blog for Sindhu vs Sun Yu final
The battle, which lasted for a total of 35 minutes, went on neck-to-neck and after a point, the scores got locked at 20-20. Call it the regaining of a certain memory or whatever, but Sindhu actually brought back glimpses of her Rio 2016 Olympics performances where she fought tooth and nail to fight for points and confidently ask the umpires for video referrals.
Sindhu won the set 23-21 and her trademark smashes and forehand did all the talking.
The third game remained a very similar one to the second set and although, it was Sung, who started off well, like every other round, Sindhu showcased all her determination to come from behind and level scores. It took 33 minutes for the Indian to make the final yet again. From a 4-7 trail to 15-15 deadlock and a 21-19 win, it was Sindhu all the way in Fuzho, China.
PV Sindhu China Open 2016 final schedule
Opponent: Sun Yu (China)
Date: November 20
Time: 11:30 am IST
Venue: Haixia Olympic Sports Center, Fuzhou, China.
TV guide: Star Sports 4/HD (India)