Highlights, World Badminton Championships 2018 final, results: PV Sindhu clinches silver; Kento Momota wins gold

In the men’s singles final, Japan’s Kento Momota has taken the lead after trouncing home favourite Shi Yuqi 21-11 in the opening game. Well, he is coming back of a title-winning spree, which includes gold medal at the Indonesia Open and Asian Championships. The Japanese is also said to be at the peak of his powers. Meanwhile, Shi Yuqi has been on and off this season. After winning the All England and India Opens, he has fizzled out a little. There’s no doubt about the youngster’s talent, having witnessed him beat former Champions and compatriots Lin Dan and Chen Long in straight games.

3 - Pusarla Venkata Sindhu is the first player to win three consecutive Silver medals in a badminton individual Major Events (World Championships / Olympics) after Lee Chong Wei. Sad.#BWFWC2018TVRI

— Badminton Talk (@BadmintonTalk) August 5, 2018

Unbelievable!!! @Pvsindhu1 comes back from 12-19 down in 2nd game to win it 24-22 and beat Yamaguchi and reach her second consecutive BWF world cship final. Blockbuster final vs @CarolinaMarin tomorrow. Sindhu you make all of India so proud 🙏🙏🇮🇳🏸 @OGQ_India

— Viren Rasquinha (@virenrasquinha) August 4, 2018

Marin becomes WORLD CHAMPION

The Spaniard beats PV Sindhu of India 21-19, 21-10 in 46 minutes to win her third gold medal at the World Championships. Sindhu did well in the opening game, with a barrage of smart, wristy strokes, however, she was beaten to the dust by Marin in the second. Sindhu had nothing left in her to reply.

18-8! A ten-point lead for Marin as she inches closer to a third World Championships medal. Her strokes troubled Sindhu right from the beginning.

#Sindhu 4-17 #Marin in second game

Two more mistakes from #Sindhu. Marin is just four points away from the title.

LIVE: https://t.co/R01HRFQoac#TOTALBWFWC2018

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) August 5, 2018

13-4! A courageous display from Marin. The Spaniard has managed to dominate the net and the backcourt with such ease, it’s just unbelievable. Sindhu’s strokes from the mid-court have been sluggish

#Sindhu 3-11 #Marin in second game

Finally a point for Sindhu as the Spaniard makes a mistake

LIVE: https://t.co/R01HRFQoac#TOTALBWFWC2018

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) August 5, 2018

9-2! It’s one-way traffic at the moment…

Marin hasn’t really stopped attacking since the mid-game break of the first game. She definitely changed gears after watching Sindhu play a composed game. Her lethal, booming smashes, coupled with quick net play has caused problems for Sindhu.

8-2! Well, that body smash was brutal. Sindhu couldn’t even see that coming. Oh, there’s the evil smile from the former World No 1.

6-1! Marin is all over the court, making her presence felt as she enjoys a healthy lead over Sindhu. The Spaniard has attacked the backhand corner.

#Sindhu 0-5 #Marin in second game.
The Indian needs to stem the tide of points NOW
LIVE: https://t.co/R01HRFQoac#TOTALBWFWC2018

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) August 5, 2018

3-0! Marin is relying on her high-paced game, the fastest of the tournament, to earn all the points quickly. Sindhu must stop Marin from cruising. Need variation.

1-0! And Marin’s electrifying pace is becoming a bit of a task for Sindhu, who has become defensive. She hits a body smash to begin the proceedings.

Carolina Marin leads 1-0

The Spaniard wins the first again 21-19 in 25 minutes to put one hand on the gold medal. Sindhu ran out of ideas towards the end of the opening game. She squandered her four-point lead at 14-10 and let Marin claw back.

19-18! Going for that acute angle slice, Marin gets that shot on point. Sindhu was caught napping there.

18-18! It took four smashes from Marin to earn that point. That’s how defensively strong Sindhu has been in the first game. The Spaniard is trying to make her opponent work on the sidelines.

#Sindhu 17-17 #Marin

Lady Luck smiles on Sindhu! The shuttle hits the net and gently trickles into the Spaniard's side for a fortuitous point!

LIVE: https://t.co/R01HRFQoac#TOTALBWFWC2018

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) August 5, 2018

#Sindhu 15-16 #Marin

And just like that #Marin takes the lead after winning seven of the last eight points.

LIVE: https://t.co/R01HRFQoac#TOTALBWFWC2018

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) August 5, 2018

15-15! We are back to square one…

That was the aggression we all were waiting for. Marin plays a variety of strokes from the mid-court to unsettle Sindhu. The Indian shuttler couldn’t lift the shuttle, thanks to Marin’s slow drops.

#Sindhu 15-13 #Marin

"Sindhu slow drop," seems to be the instructions from #Gopichand on the sidelines.

LIVE: https://t.co/R01HRFQoac#TOTALBWFWC2018

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) August 5, 2018

15-11! Both players have been producing excellent attacking strokes but Marin is getting slightly carried away. Sindhu, for all you know could make the difference with her calm approach.

14-9!  Sindhu extends her lead as she judges Marin’s shot perfectly. Yet another rally and Marin appeared a bit sluggish on her backhand corner.

12-8! Marin is going for all four corners but is failing to hit the perfect shot. Another push clear lands wide. Sindhu’s reach is just brilliant.

#Sindhu 11-8 #Marin
Marin loses the point and a challenge. She's been uncharacteristically error-prone so far.
LIVE: https://t.co/R01HRFQoac#TOTALBWFWC2018

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) August 5, 2018

10-8! Marin applies too much power to that push clear from the net. The shuttle lands just wide of the backline.

9-7! That was the first smash from Sindhu. A jump smash down the line is enough to unsettle Marin, who didn’t expect Sindhu to hit one from the mid-court.

8-5! Another excellent point won by Sindhu there. She guided the shuttle past the net with such precision. Marin looks puzzled after making a rare error at the net.

7-5! Sindhu forces Marin to play a crosscourt shot under pressure, which lands slightly wide. Is this the Indian shuttler’s strategy?

Another drop shot by #Sindhu, another point won by the Indian! She's now extended her lead to 6-4.
LIVE: https://t.co/R01HRFQoac#TOTALBWFWC2018

— Firstpost Sports (@FirstpostSports) August 5, 2018

4-3! Sindhu hits a delicate crosscourt drop shot and takes the lead for the first time. Marin was taken by surprise as Sindhu prolonged the rally.

3-2! Both Sindhu and Marin look in control of the shuttle from the net. Surprisingly, there have been rallies too. Marin holds a one-point lead

Both shuttlers are out in the middle. They look completely focused. Both coaches Pullela Gopichand and Fernando Rivas also look pumped up.

Sindhu vs Marin: Preview
 
Last year’s silver medallist is up against two-time former world champion in this mouth-watering final. Spain’s Carolina Marin has a 6-5 win-loss record against PV Sindhu, but the Indian ace won the last meeting at the Malaysian Open earlier in June.

It has been a fairly disappointing campaign for the Indian shuttlers otherwise. However, Sindhu can put a gloss on her torrid times in the finals with a gold medal in Nanjing. 

For Marin, this is her only chance to make her mark once again. She hasn’t been the player she was during the 2015-16 season and has struggled with injury woes. She has won two titles at the Worlds already and a third would make her one of the best women’s singles players to have graced the court.

We're in for a treat!

It's going to be a #Baddie finale between @Pvsindhu1 and @CarolinaMarin in the final of #BWFWC2018. pic.twitter.com/dZXmtXSGLR

— Premier Badminton League (@PBLIndiaLive) August 4, 2018

Hello and welcome to Firstpost’s live coverage of the World Badminton Championships 2018. It’s the final day of the prestigious event in Nanjing. India’s PV Sindhu will be in action in her second consecutive final. She faces two-time former world champion, Carolina Marin of Spain, 

In the men’s singles, Japan’s Kento Momota takes on Shi Yuqi of China. 

Stay tuned for updates!