BWF World C'ships: Sindhu beats Yamaguchi in thrilling semifinal

P.V. Sindhu sets up summit clash with Carolina Marin after beating Akane Yamaguchi of Japan 21-16, 24-22 in the semis.

P. V. Sindhu sailed into the semis after beating Nozomi Okuhara of Japan 21-17, 21-19 in a 58-minute quarterfinal match on Friday.

Key highlights of the BWF World Championships semifinal clash between P. V. Sindhu and Japan's Akane Yamaguchi.

Second game:

7:27pm: What a match! Sindhu finally seals the match on her third match point. She now meets Carolina Marin in the final on Sunday. Hard-fought 21-16, 24-22 win for the world No. 3.

7:23pm: Second match point for Sindhu, can she seal it this time? Amazing rally, Yamaguchi not giving up yet.  Third match point opportunity for Sindhu.

7:20pm: Yamaguchi cracks under pressure as Sindhu takes five straight points.

7:16: Sindhu now trailing 15-19, can she make a comeback? Top stuff from Sindhu as she cuts down the deficit to one point.

7:05pm: At the interval of the second game, Sindhu trails 7-11. She can cut off the deficit.

7:01pm: Sindhu stretches Yamaguchi with a cross court shot to her right.

6:58pm: Yamaguchi looks to be playing to a strategy by pushing Sindhu back to the court. So far it looks to have worked for the Japanese.

6:56pm: The pattern to the start to the second game is similar to the first as Yamaguchi takes early 3-1 lead.

First game:

6:53pm: Brilliant comeback from Sindhu after conceding early points as she wins the first game 21-16.

6:48pm: Sindhu extends the lead to 17-12  and now she looks more confident, specially with her drop shots and net play.

6:44pm: The first game has been neck-and-neck so far, but Sindhu's court movement has surely improved.

6:39pm: Brilliant overhead smash makes it 6-8 for Sindhu.  Scores now level at 9-9, with sloppy game from both players. Now at the interval of the first game, Sindhu trails 10-11.

6:34pm: Sindhu takes first point with a smash to the right of Yamaguchi. Seems to be early nerves  for the Indian shuttler. Sindhu playing it long while going for the corner placements.

6:31pm: So who will join Carolina Marin the finals? The second semis gets underway, with Yamaguchi taking a three point lead.

6:22pm: Marin claws back from one game down to beat Bingjiao He of China 13-21, 21-16, 21-13 in the semis. The second last-four clash between Sindhu and Yamaguchi starts in a while.

5:59pm: Carolina Marin stays alive in the semifinal match by taking the second game 21-16.

5:49pm: The first semifinal of women's singles between Bingjiao He  of China and Spain's Carolina Marin is on. Marin lost the first game 13-21 and in the second the Spaniard is leading 16-9.

This will be the 11th time that the two will clash and Sindhu comes in with the confidence of boasting a better record with six wins over the Japanese shuttler.

However, it is also to be noted that Yamaguchi had defeated Sindhu 19-21, 21-19, 21-18 in their previous outing at the All England Open in March this year.

The two first clashed in 2013 at the Japan Open, where Yamaguchi defeated Sindhu 21-6, 21-17. However, from 2017, in their last five outings - Sindhu has prevailed over Yamaguchi thrice.