PV Sindhu enters the Syed Modi final

P V Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medalist, advanced to the final of the Syed Modi International badminton event on Saturday when her fifth-seeded Russian opponent Evgeniya Kosetskaya retired hurt midway through their semifinal.

Sindhu, the top seed, won the first game 21-11 before conceding the second women’s singles semifinal match to Kosetskaya.

In the summit battle on Sunday, former world champion Sindhu will meet compatriot Malvika Bansod.

Malvika won a tight three-game match against fellow Indian, Anupama Upadhyaya, 19-21 21-19 21-7.

Sindhu was predicted to have an easy excursion based on her recent form, world rating, and head-to-head record.

Sindhu, who is ranked seventh in the BWF rankings, had already defeated world number 28 Kosetskaya twice before Saturday’s match, and the Indian ace continued her dominance over the Russian.

In the men’s singles, however, India’s Mithun Manjunath fought valiantly before succumbing to Arnaud Merkle of France 19-21 21-17 9-21 in the semifinals.

Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, the seventh seeded Indian combination, beat Malaysian combo Low Yeen Yuan and Valeree Siow 17-21 21-8 21-16 to reach the final of the women’s doubles.

In the final, the Indian duo will face Anna Ching Yik Cheong and Teoh Mei Xing of Malaysia, who are placed eighth.

The mixed doubles final will be an all-Indian affair, with seventh seed Ishaan Bhatnagar and Tanisha Crasto facing off against T Hema Nagendra Babu and Srivedya Gurazada.

Sixth seed Krishna Prasad Garaga and Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala will face eighth seed Wei Chong Kai Wun Tee of Malaysia in the men’s doubles final.

MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila of India defeated Fabien Delrue and William Villeger of France 21-16 19-21 21-19 in the other men’s doubles quarter-final. In the semi-finals, they will face Malaysia’s Man Wei Chong and Kai Wun Tee.

In the women’s doubles quarter-finals, India’s Ramya Venkatesh Chickmenahalli and Apeksha Nayak defeated Malaysia’s Anna Ching Yik Cheong and Teoh Mei Xing to advance to the semi-finals, where they will meet another Indian pair, Haritha M Harinarayanan and Ashna Roy.

In another women’s doubles quarter-final, India’s Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Pullela Gopichand defeated Russian combo Anastasiia Akchurina and Olga Morozova 24-22 21-10.

In the semi-finals, the Indian duo will face Low Yeen Yuan and Valeree Siow of Malaysia.

In mixed doubles, India’s MR Arjun and Treesa Jolly defeated the eighth-seeded French team of William Villeger and Anne Tran 24-22 21-17 in a 42-minute quarter-final encounter.

In the semi-finals, Arjun and Jolly will meet countrymen and seventh-seeded Ishaan Bhatnagar and Tanisha Crasto. In the quarter-finals, the Bhatnagar-Crasto combo defeated Ashith Surya and Pranjal Prabhu Chimulkar of India 21-13 21-19.

The other mixed doubles semi-finals will include Akshan Shetty and Simran Singh, as well as T Hema Nagendra Babu and Srivedya Guruzada from India.