pv sindhu

The reigning world champion wasn't at her usual best and lost 13-21 9-21 in a one-sided contest that lasted for just 32 minutes. The two-time Olympic medallist struggled with keeping her returns in right from the start and she never recovered from an early deficit. On the other hand, Yamaguchi got a great dip on her shots, often catching Sindhu out at the net and as the Japanese shuttler registered a comfortable win.

Pulling the biggest upset of the day, the 2014 Indonesia Masters winner Prannoy beat Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Viktor Axelsen of Denmark 14-21, 21-19, 21-16 in an intense one hour 11 minutes men's singles second round match. Down and out in the first game, the Indian shuttler made a stunning comeback to defeat the World no 2. It was Prannoy's first victory in six attempts against Axelsen. He will now face compatriot and former world No 1 Kidambi Srikanth in the quarterfinals.

Sindhu, the 26-year-old two-time medallist at the Olympic Games and a World Champion, lost the first game but powered back to win the next two to beat Clara Azurmendi 17-21, 21-7, 21-12 in a 47-minute encounter in the BWF World Tour Super 750 event. The 23-year-old Clara, a resident of Madrid, Spain, and who is currently ranked 56th in the World Rankings, started superbly and caught up with Sindhu at 9-9 after the Indian had taken a slight lead from 2-2.

Sindhu, the lone Indian in the fray on the penultimate day of the competition, got off to a good start as she won the first game but could not maintain the momentum as her Japanese opponent came back strongly to win the next two games and seal a place in the final. Sindhu lost 21-18, 16-21, 12-21 in the last-four stage encounter that lasted just over one hour.

The two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu will take on world No 15 Sayaka Takahashi of Japan for a place in the final on Saturday. In the quarter-final against world No 13 Busanan Ongbamrungphan, the third-seeded Sindhu breezed through the first game in just 16 minutes. The Thai upped her challenge in the second game, but Sindhu replied strongly to wrap up the match by 21-14, 21-14 in 38 minutes.

Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medallist and reigning world champion, outclassed her opponent Jakobsen 21-15, 21-18 in the first round match. She will next face Line Christophersen of Denmark at the Stade Pierre de Coubertin in Paris. The world No 10 pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy also progressed to the men's doubles round of 16 after beating Lee Jhe-Huei and Yang Po-Hsuan 18-21, 21-17, 21-13.

Sindhu won bronze in badminton singles event on Sunday to add to her silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games in the same category. Thakur was joined by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister of Culture, Tourism and Development of North-Eastern Region G. Kishan Reddy and Minister of State of Youth Affairs and Sports, Nisith Pramanik, as well as senior officers of the sports ministry like secretary (sports) Ravi Mittal.

Hundreds of fans poured in and gave Sindhu a befitting welcome with drums and dhols. Sindhu had created history by becoming the first Indian women to win two Olympic medals for the country. The government of Andhra Pradesh has announced to reward of Rs 30 lakh for the ace shuttler who had also won silver at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Indian shuttler PV Sandhu defeated China's He Bingjiao in straight games to win the bronze medal in badminton women's singles at the Tokyo Olympics. The win came a day after losing to Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei in the semi-finals. With the bronze at Tokyo, Sindhu became the first Indian women to win medals in successive Olympics after winning the silver medal in 2016 edition at Rio.

Sindhu, looking to add a gold medal to the silver she won in Rio, dominated her Japanese rival at the net, created points with her disguised shots, and completed straight game wins. The Indian 26-year-old Indian shuttler from Hyderabad was in total control of the first game and then quelled a strong fightback by Akane to reach the semifinals for the second successive Olympics.