Malaysia Masters: Sindhu storms into final after hard-fought victory against Ongbamrungphan

KUALA — India’s ace shuttler PV Sindhu has progressed to the final of the women’s singles in the Malaysia Masters after defeating Thailand’s Busanan Ongbamrungphan in the semi-final match here at Axiata Arena on Saturday.

In the hard-fought encounter, Sindhu outclassed the higher-ranked Thai shuttler 13-21, 21-16, 21-12 in the 88-minute-long encounter. She will play her first final in any tournament since March last year.

This is also Sindhu’s fourth final at BWF World Tour Super 500 events. Playing in his first semi-final of the year, the two-time Olympic medallist lost the opening game before unleashing her true valour on the court.

In the second game, she took the lead from world no. 10 after a highly competitive battle and entered the halfway mark with two points lead. She kept her composure and added to her lead to win the game 21-16.

In the deciding game, she came out with all guns blazing and gave no chance to her opponent to make a comeback in the match. Before switching sides, Sindhu had 11-5 lead which she took to eight match points at the end. She easily took the game 21-12 to seal the encounter.

Sindhu will next take on China’s Wang Zhi Yi in the final on Sunday. The reigning Asian champion outclassed compatriot Zhang Yiman in straight games to book a final berth.