Suncheon : PV Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth clinched contrasting victories in their respective quarter-final matches at the Korea Open Super 500 tournament in Suncheon on Friday.
Sindhu and Srikanth are the only two Indian shutters left in the fray after the 3rd-seeded men’s doubles pairing of Sattwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty crashed out in the quarter-final earlier in the day.
Two-time Olympic medalist Sindhu notched up her 17th win over familiar foe Thailand’s Busanan Ongbamrungphan 21-10 21-16 to storm into women’s singles semi-final.
Sindhu will face a stiff test as she takes on 2nd-seeded Korean star An Seyoung in the last-4 round on Saturday. Sindhu has struggled against the young Korean star, losing to her twice last year.
Meanwhile, World Championships silver medallist Srikanth rode on his power and precision to outwit local hope Son Wan Ho 21-12 18-21 21-12 in a men’s singles quarterfinal match that lasted just over an hour.
Srikanth had a 4-7 record against the Korean, having lost to him on last three occasions.
However, the Indian played better badminton on Friday to come up trumps against an opponent, who is coming back to international badminton after a two-year hiatus.
The Indian, seeded fifth, will next face third seed Jonatan Christie of Indonesia, who had claimed the Swiss Open last month.