PV Sindhu has been brilliant in the ongoing Denmark Open where she has defeated some top shuttlers including Chinese Taipei's Tai Tzu Ying and China's Wang Yihan in the second round and quarter finals respectively.
But the competition, which is at the business end now, is only getting tougher for PV Sindhu, who is set to face world champion Carolina Marin in the semi finals on Saturday. However, one look at PV Sindhu's form in the Denmark Open reflects that the Indian shuttler is not going to be a pushover for the second seed.
Both the shuttlers come into the match with full confidence as they have not dropped a single set in the Denmark Open, which makes the contest even more interesting. Even though Marin has not played against top players in the competition, she will start as favourite. The Spaniard has defeated Sun Yu, Mette Poulsen and Michelle Li so far.
Hence, Sindhu could prove to be her biggest opponent in the competition.
As far as the head-to-head record goes, Sindhu has lost thrice in four meetings and was defeated in straight sets when the two shuttlers last met in January 2015 during the Syed Modi International badminton championship.
Such head-to-head record should not dampen Sindhu's spirit and in fact should inspire her to better her record after defeating Tzu Ying and Wang respectively as the Indian had a poor record against these shuttlers as well.
When players of such in-form and quality meet, one can expect a humdinger of a contest. Both the shuttlers possess a fine defence, which is going to be tested to the hilt during the semi finals. Marin, who uses her angles on the court beautifully, will not give any easy points to Sindhu.
Sindhu, who can push Marin to her limit, should not be overawed by the Spaniard and should play her normal game, which has always been aggressive. Sindhu, who possesses a powerful game from the baseline, has gradually improved her net play of late, which has made her an even more dangerous player.
The winner of the semi final is expected to meet either China's Li Xuerui or South Korea's Sung Ji Hyun, who will square off in the other semi final, for the title decider on Sunday.
Where to watch live
PV Sindhu vs Carolina Marin semi final match is scheduled for 2:30pm local time* (6pm IST) start.
Star Sports 4/HD will offer live coverage of the Denmark Open matches in India, while live streaming option is also available on starsports.com.
Click here for all the live score updates.
Other matches of the Denmark Open will be streamed live on BadmintonWorld.tv
*Expected start time could change as per the duration of other matches.
