Lakshya Sen and PV Sindhu reached the finals of the Hylo Open Super 500 with straight-game wins in their respective semi-finals. Lakshya defeated France’s Toma Junio Popov in the semi-final.
The 2022 CWG gold medalist defeated Popov 21-17, 21-13. Sidhu defeated Anmol Kharb in an all-Indian semi-final. The two-time Olympic medalist registered a comfortable 21-13, 21-16 win.She will be up against eighth seed Line Hojamark Kjaersfeldt in the final on Sunday (November 1).
The opening game saw short rallies, with Popov initially asking all the questions, but Lakshya did well to keep the scores level at 4-4. The Indian moved to 7-5, only to commit a net error. He soon extended his lead to 10-6, with the Frenchman making a few unforced errors. A smash gave Lakshya a five-point advantage at the break.
Popov found greater consistency in his strokes after the break and narrowed the deficit to 9-11 before sending a return long. Lakshya’s defence stood tall against Popov. A lovely down-the-line smash from the Indian extended his lead, as he kept returning everything thrown at him to move to 16-11.
Popov found a second wind, constructing the rallies well to win three successive points and close the gap to 15-17.
The rallies featured net battles, flat exchanges and angled returns, with both players trying to keep each other guessing and unsettle their opponent.
Lakshya pushed one towards the back of the court to earn four game points. He sprayed one wide before sealing the game with another net winner. Lakshya carried the momentum into the second game, opening up a 4-1 lead.
A cross-court smash and another steep return from Popov were followed by a careless shot from Lakshya as the scores were level at 4-4. The Indian stepped up the attack with a barrage of smashes to move to 7-4. Popov fought back to 6-7 before Lakshya won a net battle. With the Frenchman being sloppy, Lakshya took a four-point lead at the break.
The Indian kept Popov, the world No. 14, under pressure with a barrage of quality shots, dominating the rallies to open up a seven-point lead at 14-7. Lakshya soon earned nine match points. He sealed the win with a precise smash after squandering two match points.
PV Sindhu defeats Anmol
Anmol, 19, was playing in just her second Super 500 semifinal, having reached the last four at the Arctic Open last year.
The only previous meeting between the two Indians was at the Syed Modi India International in 2024, where Sindhu registered a straight-game win over her young compatriot.
It was a similar story on Saturday as Sindhu’s attacking game, precise net play and wider repertoire of strokes ensured that Anmol, a member of the gold medal-winning Indian team at the 2024 Asia Team Championships, could not put her illustrious compatriot under pressure.
In the first game, Sindhu struggled to judge the deep tosses, missing a few points as Anmol briefly moved 4-2 ahead. The 19-year-old produced a fine cross-court drop but lacked the wherewithal to put consistent pressure on her senior opponent.
Sindhu’s attacking game and precise net play meant she was never behind for long. The 31-year-old has a wider repertoire of strokes and greater experience and never looked fazed, going through the opening game with consummate ease.
Sindhu moved to 10-7 before Anmol produced a cross-court return and a net shot, only to hit her next shot wide. At the break, Sindhu led 11-9. Sindhu extended her lead to 15-10 in a jiffy. Soon, a net shot earned her seven game points, and she converted the first after Anmol hit her return long.
After the change of ends, Anmol again raced to a 4-2 lead, but two fine shots from Sindhu saw her regain the advantage.
A fine net dribble helped Anmol make it 8-8 and then take a 9-8 lead when Sindhu found the net. But the margin for error was small, and Anmol lacked the precision and consistency to sustain the pressure. A net error handed Sindhu a slender one-point lead at the break.
At 13-13, Sindhu failed to negotiate a smash, and Anmol followed it up with another precise smash to take a 15-13 lead. But, as in the opening game, the scores were soon level at 15-15, courtesy of two errors from the junior shuttler.
A fine drop helped Sindhu take a 17-15 lead. Two more errors from Anmol handed Sindhu four match points, and she sealed the win with another precise return at the back.