Canada Open 2023: PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen enter semi-finals with contrasting wins

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Calgary, Jul 8: Ace India shuttlers PV Sindhu and Laksha Sen advanced to the semi-finals of the Canada Open after registering contrasting wins and kept India's challenge running in the Super 500 badminton tournament.

Sindhu and Sen, the Commonwealth Games champions, will now face a strong challenge from Japanese shuttlers in their respective semi-final games.

Sindhu, a double Olympic medallist, stamped her authority over Fang Jie to register her first victory in four meetings against her opponent with a dominating 21-13 21-7 margin in the women's singles quarterfinals late on Friday night.

Later, Sen staved off a spirited fight from German qualifier Julien Carraggi 21-8 17-21 21-10 in the men's singles quarterfinal. Canada Open 2023: Indian Shuttlers in Action, Schedule, Results, Telecast and Live Streaming Info

The Hyderabadi shuttler, who received a walkover in the pre-quarter-finals, will now face world number one Japan's Yamaguchi and Sen is pitted against fourth-seeded Japanese.

Sindhu - who turned 28 a couple of days back - has a favourable 14-10 head-to-head record against the top-seeded Japanese, who had beaten the Indian in their last meeting at Singapore Open this year.

Sen, on the other hand, has a 1-1 record against Nishimoto, having last played him at the 2022 Japan Open.

Sindhu looked more alert as she zoomed to a 5-1 lead early on. Her trademark smashes and drops troubled Fang Jie, who also committed a lot of unforced errors. The Indian entered the break with an 11-6 lead.

Sindhu was quick on her feet and covered the court well, returning everything thrown at her with ease. With the shuttle going to net a few times, Fang Jie reduced the deficit to 10-14 and then 12-16 but Sindhu finished things with two whipping smashes.

The second game started on an even keel with Fang Jie managing a slender 5-3 lead at one stage but Sindhu quickly turned things around, reaching the interval at 11-5 with her opponent finding the net.

It was mostly a one-way traffic as Sindhu made her opponent work hard, dominating the rallies to keep moving ahead. Looking for precision, the Chinese missed the lines and soon handed over the match to the Indian with two net errors.

(With PTI inputs)