Semi-final report: Rio Olympics silver medallist PV Sindhu stormed into the women’s singles final of the Dubai World Superseries Finals for the first time, after beating China’s Chen Yufei in straight games in the semi-finals. The 22-year-old Hyderabadi displayed brilliant form to outclass the World No 8 Chinese shuttler 21-15, 21-18 in 59 minutes at the Hamdan Sports Complex. Sindhu will now take on top-seeded Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi in the summit clash of World Superseries Final on Sunday. Interestingly, Sindhu had defeated Yamaguchi in straight games in her final group match on Friday. Sindhu also became the second Indian to reach the final of the prestigious season-ending tournament after her city mate Saina Nehwal finished runner-up in 2011.
Highlights, Dubai World Superseries Finals: Viktor Axelsen successfully defends title; gritty Sindhu loses final to Yamaguchi
Catch all the live updates and scores from the final day of the Superseries Finals as PV Sindhu faces Akane Yamaguchi and Lee Chong Wei takes on Viktor Axelsen.
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Thank you for joining us for all the live coverage of the Dubai World Superseries Finals 2017.
World No 2 Akane Yamaguchi lifted the women’s singles title after defeating India’s PV Sindhu in a three-game thriller
In a similar match, World No 1 Viktor Axelsen successfully defended his title in another three-game thriller against World No 2 and four-time title winner Lee Chong Wei.
It was a wonderful week for badminton and thank you for joining Firstpost for the coverage over the past week.
It is now time for the final match of the day.
Defending champion and World No 1 Viktor Axelsen is up against World No 2 and 4-time title winner Lee Chong Wei in what promises to be a match worthy of a FINAL
The women’s doubles match between the two Japanese pairs is underway.
Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota are up against Shiho Tanaka and Koharu Yonemoto.
Tanaka and Yonemoto are one game up after winning it 21-16!
Akane Yamaguchi beats Sindhu: 15-21, 12-21, 19-21
A 94-minute thriller ends in Yamaguchi’s favour. Sindhu tried her best to outsmart the Japanese but just Yamaguchi’s quick footwork and defence proved to be too much at the end of the day. Sindhu did have a 5-0 and a 4-0 lead in the second and third games but failed to take advantage. Credit goes to Yamaguchi for her steely display.
19-19!
Nerves of steel as both players are locked at 19-all. This is turning out to be a one hell of a game.
18-18! PRECISION
It’s all about Sindhu’s precision in pressure situations that sets her apart from the rest. She floors Yamaguchi with a powerful cross court smash.
16-17!
Sindhu pulls one back. Is it? The linesman calls it wide but Sindhu challenges and wins it.
17-15!
Yamaguchi opens up a two-point lead over Sindhu with two drop shots. Sindhu is under massive pressure now. Both the players are tired.
THAT DEFENCE IS JUST OUT OF THE WORLD!
How on earth did Sindhu manage to defend two consecutive smashes? Yamaguchi is down on the floor. This match is going down the wire! Sindhu leads 14-13
One game apiece and 13-13!
We’ve got a thriller here in the women’s singles final. Both the shuttlers have asked for a breather now.
13-11!
Sindhu takes advantage of Yamaguchi’s position at the backcourt to claim an all-important point. This game is all about winning rallies.
11-10! Challenge unsuccessful by Sindhu
Yamaguchi closes the gap on the Indian’s lead. Both the shuttlers have started to look comfortable while playing rallies but this will only make them tired. This is challenging