Olympic silver medalist P.V. Sindhu defeated Chinese He Bingjiao in the semifinals to establish a showdown with world champion Nozomi Okuhara of Japan at the Korea Super Series in Seoul on Saturday.
The 22-year-old Indian had entered the game with a 3-5 record face-to-face, having lost to the Chinese in the Asian Badminton Championship this year.
But that did not matter when Sindhu saw World No.7 21-10 17-21 21-16 in a game that lasted an hour and six minutes.
The world number 4 Indian, who had won last year’s Chinese Grand Prix and closed the Indian Super Series and Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold this season, is now only one win away from another title.
However, he will again be his final opponent of the World Championship and eighth-seeded Okuhara, who will stand in the way when they meet in the final on September 17.
The Japanese bronze medalist entered the final with a 21-17 21-18 victory over compatriot Akane Yamaguchi, second seed.
Sindhu made a wild start for the opening match as he ran a 9-1 lead before moving on to break at 11-4 when the Chinese southpaw collided.
Sindhu made some unforced errors but did not let her derail her game as she moved to a 10-point lead and sealed it when Bingjiao once again struck out.
In the second game, Sindhu and Bingjiao were tied 4-4 initially but the Indian once closed a five-point lead at the break when she unleashed a body hit and then Bingjiao hit again.
But Sindhu’s unforced errors and Bingjiao’s resilience helped the Chinese slowly erase the deficit and do it 10-13.
Sindhu tried to involve his opponent in the fast rallies, but Bingjiao managed to recover in 15-15 with a precise crush down the line.
Sindhu suddenly hit a bad patch when two wide shots and one of his returns were buried in the net, giving the Chinese a 20-16 lead. A deceptive return in the service of Bingjiao saw Sindhu save a game point, but the Chinese sealed it when the Indian found the net again.
The decision maker saw the rallies longer and faster as both shutters seemed to outdo each other. Sindhu managed to lead 7-4 and 9-6 before Bingjiao recovered with three consecutive points.
However, two wide shots once again ruined Bingjiao’s run while Sindhu held the lead for the third time in the interval.
The script did not change much after the break, while Sindhu continued to lead even as Bingjiao struggled with his length and ended up sending the long and long ferry.
Sindhu moved to a 19-15 lead before Bingjiao produced a mighty hit to pick up a point, but the Indian was not in the mood to stretch further when he moved to the starting point when Bingjiao struck again.
The Indian then sealed the problem with a lucky network chord.
