Two-time Olympic medalist PV Sindhu overcame a slow start to beat world number seven Han Yue of China in a thrilling match to advance to the quarter-finals of the Denmark Open Super 750 badminton tournament on Thursday. Sindhu, a former world champion and currently ranked 18th, won 18-21, 21-12, 21-16 in a second-round match that lasted 63 minutes. This is her first win over a top 10 player since beating Han in the Malaysia Masters final in May.
With this win, Sindhu, who is currently teaming Anup Sridhar and Lee Hyun-il, extended her head-to-head record against Han to 7-1 in eight encounters.
Sindhu, a finalist in the 2015 edition, will face Indonesian Paris Olympic bronze medalist Gregoria Mariska Tunjung or Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt in her third quarter-final this year.
She had reached the last eight in French Open and Spain Madrid Masters, apart from the final in Malaysia.
Sindhu, who returned from Paris medal-less for the first time in three Olympics, has a stunning 10-2 record against Tunjung but the two have not played each other so far this year.
The 24-year-old Han had previously defeated Sindhu at the Badminton Asia Championships in April, making this match particularly important.
Sindhu and Han started with short rallies, sharing the first eight points, but Sindhu conceded five consecutive points and fell behind. She tried to prolong the rallies to tire her opponent, who had played a 79-minute opener on Wednesday.
This strategy seemed to work as the Indian managed to reduce the deficit to 9-10 before Han delivered an accurate return on the line.
Han led 14-10 after the break, with Sindhu faltering in her aggressive approach. Due to poor shot execution, she struggled at 13-17. A body return cramped Sindhu, allowing Han to take six game points, but the Indian saved four before Han won the match with a cross-court shot.
Sindhu came out with positive intentions and was 3-0 ahead after the change of sides. At 4-3, she unleashed a thunderous blow on the return of serve, which was a sign of her determination.
With slightly more pace in the rallies, Sindhu built a five-point lead at the break, capitalizing on Han's unforced errors.
The momentum completely changed as Han struggled. Sindhu asserted her authority with a net kill that went up 15-7. She quickly took 10 game points and stretched the match to a decider.
In the third game, both rivals increased the intensity, with Sindhu looking more proactive. She added strength to her return and led 6-3 early. However, fortunes returned as Han curtailed her mistakes and produced precise returns to take a four-point lead from a six-point interval.
An energetic Sindhu came back to score four straight points to equalize. The Indian looked in good spirits and landed her return with more power, even if Han missed a couple of backhand returns that went wide. At 12-13, Han won a 45-shot rally with a wristy, deceptive return to stay in the match.
The two traded blows and regularly exchanged leads from 14-14 to 16-16. Sindhu then moved two points ahead when Han went wide and quickly moved to 19-16 with a backhand winner. She took four match points with a high backhand block and sealed the victory when Han mishit a shot.
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