PBL 2020: PV Sindhu's clinical display helps Hyderabad Hunters overcome scare against Mumbai Rockets to clinch win

Hyderabad: World Champion PV Sindhu put up a masterclass to beat Shriyanshi Pardeshi in an all-Indian clash as Hyderabad Hunters notched up a thrilling 4-3 win over Mumbai Rockets in the fifth Premier Badminton League here on Sunday. Languishing at the bottom of the table, Hyderabad finally had something to cheer about as Sindhu led a recovery after the team was 0-3 behind at one stage against the sixth-placed Rockets. [caption id=“attachment_7969111” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] PV Sindhu represents the Hyderabad Hunters in the PBL. Source: PBL[/caption] Sindhu had come to this match on a two-match losing streak, having suffered a reversal of fortunes at the hands of Michelle Li and Tai Tzu Ying. However, this time the Hunters Trump made no mistake as she beat Shriyanshi 15-5, 15-10 in a clinical display. Priyanshu Rajawat then defeated Korea’s Lee Dong Keun 15-13, 15-9 in the men’s singles match, while Vladimir Ivanov and N Sikki Reddy brushed aside KS Rang and Pia Bernadeth 15-8, 15-8 to edge out Mumbai at the GMC Balayogi SATS Indoor Stadium. Earlier, 2014 Commonwealth Games champion Parupalli Kashyap won his first match of the season after tasting a defeat in four consecutive ties. The Mumbai ace has a 3-2 head-to-head record against World No 42 Daren Liew on the BWF World Tour and he used all that experience against the Malaysian, whom he last beat at the Korea Open in November. Showing all his rhythm and range, the Mumbai Trump was able to register a quickfire 15-8, 15-13 win. In men’s doubles, Kim Sa Rang and Kim Gi Jung easily beat Hyderabad’s Ben Lane and Vladimir Ivanov 15-10, 15-8 to make it 3-0 in Mumbai’s favour. Sindhu then took the court and claimed a straight game win to start Hyderabad’;s recovery. In the first game, it was a one-way traffic as Pardeshi found it difficult to counter Sindhu’s pace and power. In the second game, however, the Mumbai player was able to give a better account of herself. By speeding up the shuttle, she was able to put an end to Sindhu’s domination. As Sindhu fumbled at the net, Pardeshi was just two points away from the World No 6 at 9-11 before the Hyderabad shuttler stopped her momentum and wrapped up the match.