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In her quest for a sixth medal at the BWF World Championships, PV Sindhu faces the World No. 1 Tai Tzu Ying in the quarterfinals in Huelva, Spain, on Friday.
The Indian hasn't beaten Tai in their last four meetings. Their most recent clash, at the Tokyo Olympics ended in a 21-18, 21-12 win for the Chinese Taipei shuttler.
However, Sindhu is known for her big-match temperament and her last win over Tai came at this very tournament in 2019. The Rio Olympic silver medalist conceded the first game but held her nerves for a gritty 12-21, 23-21, 21-19 win in a thrilling quarterfinal match.
Two years later, the two are meeting once again at the same stage. While Sindhu is under pressure to defend her crown this time, she also comes into this contest with a huge boost of confidence.
The 26-year-old played one of the best matches of her career to impose her authority over World No. 10 Pornpawee Chochuwong in the pre-quarterfinals. Having lost twice to the Thai previously, Sindhu faced the threat of bowing out before the last-eight stage at the BWF World Championships for the first time in her career.
But the two-time Olympic medalist came prepared and showed her big-match mentality right from the start. Using her power and attacking game to perfection, the Indian sailed away to a 21-14, 21-18 win.
Tai, on the other hand, suffered a mid-match lapse to drop the second game to World No. 21 Kirsty Gilmour before rebounding for a 21-10, 19-21, 21-11 win.
This is the Tokyo Olympics silver medalist's first tournament since the mega quadrennial Games. Tai's rustiness was quite evident against a quality opponent. Sindhu will look to take advantage of it and not allow Tai to use her deceptions by imposing her own aggressive game right from the beginning.
If she accomplishes it, she could have a chance to win yet another medal at the BWF World Championships.
BWF World Championships 2021: Match details
Fixture: (6) PV Sindhu vs (1) Tai Tzu Ying.
Head-to-head: Tai Tzu Ying leads PV Sindhu 14-5 in the head-to-head. The Chinese Taipei ace beat the Indian 21-18, 21-12 at the Tokyo Olympics earlier this year.
Sindhu's last win over Tai was in the last edition of the BWF World Championships, where the Indian came through 12-21, 23-21, 21-19.
Date: December 17, 2021.
Time: 10:00 am local time, 2:30 pm IST.
Tournament: TotalEnergies BWF World Championships 2021.
Round: Quarterfinals.
Venue: Huelva, Spain.
Category: Grade 1- Individual Tournaments.
BWF World Championships 2021: TV schedule
The BWF World Championships 2021 is being telecast live on the Star Sports 3 and Star Sports 2 HD TV channels in India.
BWF World Championships 2021: Live streaming details
The BWF World Championships 2021 can be live-streamed on the Disney+Hotstar app.
