Star Indian shuttler PV Sindhu storms into Denmark Open semis

ODENSE: Star Indian shuttler PV Sindhu showed glimpses of her old self, dishing out a compact game to storm into the semi-finals of Denmark Open Super 750 tournament with a comfortable win over World No. 19 Supanida Katethong in Odense, on Friday.

The two-time Olympic medallist, who has endured a winless phase this season, displayed her immaculate retrieving skills and exemplary net play to outshine Katethong 21-19, 21-12 in 47 minutes and make it to a second semi-final in two weeks.

Sindhu will face Spain's three-time world champion Carolina Marin who beat Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei 19-21, 21-15, 21-18.

It hasn't been exactly smooth sailing for Sindhu in this tournament as she took three games to get rid of her opponents -- world no 28 Kristy Gilmour and world no 7 Gregoria Mariska Tunjung in the first two rounds.

Coming into this match, the Indian enjoyed a 3-2 record against the Thai but the twin losses at India Open 2022 and 2023 editions would still hurt Sindhu, as it came in front of her home crowds.

But on Friday, the 28-year-old somewhat erased those memories as she matched her technically sound opponent in every department and managed to limit her errors to come up trumps.

The Indian did miss a couple of points for misjudgement at the backline but that didn't matter as she grabbed a 11-8 lead with a cross-court smash.

After the change of ends, the Thai erred in the forecourt few times to allow Sindhu dominate the proceedings. The Indian was up 19-12 in a jiffy.

The Thai played some precise shots on the lines to threaten Sindhu's supremacy. The Indian was also guilty of making unforced errors as Katethong recovered to 17-19.

However, the Indian crushed the revival with a on-the-line return to grab three game points and sealed the opening game after Katethong floated a cross-court wide.

In the second game, Katethong struggled with her length and sprayed the shuttle long and wide as Sindhu was up 5-1. Two precise returns, and a lucky net chord, helped Katethong to draw level at 5-5. Sindhu however managed to eke out a 9-6 lead. The Thai seemed to step up the pace and made it 8-9 after unleashing a straight smash. Katethong set up the points well but failed in execution as Sindhu again led 11-9. Agencies

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