INDIA’s P.V. Sindhu is just a match away from making history after reaching the women’s singles final of the World Championships in Basel, Switzerland yesterday.
The 24-year-old will be hoping to be third time lucky today after failing to make it count at the final hurdles of the 2017 and 2018 editions.
In yesterday’s semi-finals, fifth-seed Sindhu faced no problems dispatching China’s World No 3 Chen Yufei 21-7, 21-14 in just 40 minutes.
She will face Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand or Nozomi Okuhara of Japan, who were involved in a late semi-final match, for the crown.
“I am happy but not satisfied yet. There is one more match to go and I want to get gold, but it won’t be easy.
“I just need to focus on myself and give my best,” Sindhu told Badminton World Federation (BWF) yesterday.
Sindhu has been rather unlucky in major championships. Apart from losing in two world meet finals, the World No 5 was also a losing finalist at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.
However, compatriot B. Sai Praneeth failed to make it a sweet day for India following a 21-13, 21-8 loss to defending champion Kento Momota of Japan in the last four of the men’s singles.
Momota, the World No 1, will play either Denmark’s Anders Antonsen or Thailand’s Kantaphon Wangcharoen, in today’s final.
In the Para World Championships, Malaysia will be banking on six-time champion Cheah Liek Hou for honours.
The 30-year-old, who was born with Erb’s palsy, defeated France’s Meril Laquette 19-21, 21-10, 21-10 in the quarter-finals yesterday. The Malaysian played top seed Dheva Anrimusthi of Indonesia in a late semi-final match.