BWF Super Series Finals: PV Sindhu and Akane Yamaguchi shadow box on court

PV Sindhu, who dispatched Akane Yamaguchi in straight games, will next play China’s Chen Yufei. (Source: AP)

The lobbed serve is not exactly the most technical of badminton shots to start off a rally with. The simple thump upwards requires the server to only ensure the shuttle falls within the baseline while pushing the opponent back as well. It’s a technique you’d associate more with someone who is new to the sport.

It’s not a style you’d expect to be the most prominent shot when World No.2 Akane Yamaguchi played World No.3 PV Sindhu. That too in a BWF World Super Series Finals match. Yet there it was, the most staple serving style for the pair in a match that was anyway a dead rubber encounter, for both had already secured a berth in the semifinal of the prestigious season finale.

Not much, however, should be read into the mundane choice of shot selection. Nor from the scoreline that read 21-9, 21-13 to Sindhu in a 36-minute contest. For the result never mattered in this match. Rather, it was all about keeping their cards hidden.

“This wasn’t an important match, but there is a possibility that they will play each other later in the tournament,” says U Vimal Kumar, former national coach. “The final four is decided over lots, so they probably didn’t want to give much away with their tactics should they draw each other.”

With nothing at stake, it was still Sindhu who took the initiative in the game. Standing at 5-feet-11, a whole 10 inches more than Yamaguchi, the 22-year-old wasn’t really stretched in her court coverage, as she’d retrieve her Japanese opponents shots with ease.

True to her game, there was an attacking intent as well, yet more through the deceptive drop smash that complements her all-round game. On the night at the Hamdan Sports Complex in Dubai, Sindhu would engage in a rally and push her opponent to the baseline before, almost casually, playing a drop smash that would often leave Yamaguchi rooted.

It’s how Sindhu converted the game point in the first, after just 13 minutes of play. Her trademark big smashes were rare, but she did present a few as the match went on. In the second game, Yamaguchi kept pace with Sindhu, as they’d trade points with neither being able to break away. That was a cue for Sindhu to up the ante. At 9-8 up in the second, Sindhu unleashed a smash that was clocked at 333 kmph to give her a two-point cushion that would inevitably widen.

More intriguing, however, has been her fitness levels throughout the round robin stage of the tournament. Arvind Bhat, a former India international who has turned to coaching, remembers travelling with Sindhu to the French Open. At the Super Series event in October, Sindhu had crashed out in the semifinal after losing to Yamaguchi. “She wasn’t that fit when she played there. But now she’s moving very well on court. She’s worked hard on her fitness and looks good.”

The 2016 Olympic silver medallist is now the only player in the women’s singles category to have won all of her three round robin matches.

Yamaguchi, in turn, is a player renowned for her remarkable retrieving skills. A defensive counter-puncher, her pace, court coverage and anticipation helped her reach the final of four Super Series events this year, though she’d only go on to win the title at the China Open.

Against Sindhu though, she didn’t put much effort in keeping rallies going. In fact, the longest rally in the match was a 33-shot affair that eventually went Sindhu’s way. Her attacking shots too weren’t convincing, as she’d commit more unforced errors than win points. So much so that Sindhu raced to an 11-1 lead at the first game interval – after only five minutes – due to Yamaguchi’s shots crashing into the net or falling wide of the lines.

“Both had already qualified, so they probably wanted to save as much energy as they could,” adds Kumar. “But because of that, this wasn’t a great quality match.”

As it panned out, Sindhu will now play World No.8 Chen Yufei of China. Last year, the 19-year-old had won the Junior World Championship before entering the senior stream.

Boasting a range of shots that she varies at will, Chen won the Macau Open Grand Prix Gold last year, before finishing runner-up at the Swiss Open GPG this term. Against Sindhu, she won twice but lost thrice in the five matches they’ve played against each other. The most prominent clash, however, came at the senior World Championships semi-finals. Chen eventually won bronze and Sindhu reached the final and won the silver.

Srikanth loses to Shi Yuqi

It was an anti-climatic finish to the season for World No.4 Kidambi Srikanth, as the ace shuttler would lose his final match 21-17, 19-21, 21-14 to Shi Yuqi of China. The 24-year-old had been in stellar form in the lead-up to the World Super Series Finals, having won four Super Series titles in the year, till a leg injury stunted his progress.

In Dubai, Srikanth had already been knocked out after losses to Viktor Axelsen and Chou Tien Chen in the round robin stage, before he played Shi in the last group match.