Good morning and welcome to Sportstar's live updates and commentary of the badminton's ultimate tournament — the BWF World Tour Finals as we buckle up for some adrenalin rush.
The top-eight in the world lock horns and from India we have Sameer Verma and P.V. Sindhu in the fray.
Sindhu meets Akane Yamaguchi while Sameer locks horns with Kento Momota.
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Kenta Momota beats Sameer Verma 21-18, 21-6 to win.
21-6 Immaculate net play from Momota. He smashes a forehand winner and walks away with the match.
20-6 Match point for Momota. Sameer just seems to have given it away.
18-5 Momota is running away with this game. Sameer is committing a plethora of unforced errors.
16-4 Sameer tries to increase the tempo and another unforced error, at the net, means Momota is running away with the game.
14-4 Sameer's shoddy work at the nets gives Momota a 10-point lead.
12-4 Momota targets Sameer's deep backhand corner and pushes in a good forehand winner.
11-2 Momota gets to the break with a healthy lead as Sameer goes wide.
10-2 Momota's smashes are monstrous and he displays one to Sameer from the net.
9-2 Sameer is looking clueless and would need to up the ante. He directs a forehand into the net.
8-2 A cross court attempt by Sameer and he finds the net from a close range.
7-2 Sameer misjudges another long shot and Momota is running away with the game and match.
4-2 A challenge from Momota on a line call and he is successful with the challenge call.
2-0 Momota takes the upper hand in the second game, winning the first two points with good winners.
Second game begins
21-18 Kenta Momota wins the first game. He directs a forehand smash to Sameer's body and the Indian misses it.
20-18 A couple of unforced errors from Momota and Sameer tries to crawl back.
20-16 Game point for Momota and Sameer saves one when Momota goes wide.
18-13 A cross court forehand smash from his backhand corner gives Sameer the point.
17-10 A good service return by Sameer and sends a forehand winner, down the line.
15-8 Sameer has no answers to Momota's good net play.
13-7 Momota deceives Sameer with a neat, delicate drop shot.
12-7 Back-to-back points for Sameer. He is trying his best to crawl into the game.
12-5 The Japanese goes long and wide. An unforced errors gives Sameer the serve.
11-4 A healthy lead for Momota at the mid-game break.
10-4 The Japanese opens up a healthy lead when Sameer goes long, yet again.
8-4 The Indian misjudges a long shot and Momota's shot falls in, at the baseline.
7-3 Sameer goes long at the baseline, twice in a row.
4-3 A nice rally and it ends when Momta finds the net from the forehand back corner, in a cross court attempt.
4-2 Nicely disguised shot from Momota and Sameer couldn't reach it, to his left.
3-2 A little casual from Momota as he sends the shuttle on the net.
2-1 Sameer can't execute a drop shot properly.
1-1 Easy first points for both the players.
Both the players have met each other twice and have one win apiece.
What a match we just witnessed. It is now time for Sameer Verma vs Kento Momota.
P.V. Sindhu wins in a 51-minute clash. She beats Akane Yamaguchi 24-22, 21-15.
21-15 The Japanese cannot save another as she goes down. Sindhu has been delicate with her drop shots and powerful in her smashes and Yamaguchi cannot return the last one.
20-15 An unforced error from Sindhu. Yamaguchi has five more match points to save.
20-14 Match point for Sindhu, and she has 6. Yamaguchi finds the net off a drop shot.
19-13 Yamaguchi takes two points but goes wide at the sideline in the next.
18-11 Yamaguchi finds the net and Sindhu picks up her 8th point on the trot.
16-11 It is Sindhu in the driving seat with a five-point cushion. She smashes one down the line for the point.
14-11 Good play from Sindhu and she sends a winner to the backhand corner of Yamaguchi and opens up a three-point lead.
10-11 Yamaguchi goes into the break with a slender lead.
10-10 Sindhu draws level with a forehand winner and a drop shot next.
8-9 The Indian cannot control her smash and goes long at the baseline.
7-7 Yamaguchi goes long at the baseline.
6-7 A neat drop shot by Sindhu.
5-7 Yamaguchi challenges a line call. The shuttle just falls in at the baseline. That was a good challenge.
3-3 Good net play from Yamaguchi and Sindhu's cross court shot isn't successfully executed.
3-1 A cross court smash from Sindhu and Yamaguchi is just a spectator.
2-1 A couple of unforced errors by Yamaguchi and Sindhu takes the lead.
0-1 Yamaguchi well in control at the start and Sindhu just gets her cross court attempt on the net.
Second game begins
24-22 Sindhu wins the opening game as Yamaguchi's return lands on the net.
23-22 Second game point for Sindhu as Yamaguchi finds the net.
22-22 What a rally!! The longest of the match. Yamaguchi tries a cross-court smash and well, it just goes out and the Japanese cannot believe it.
21-22 This is getting interesting. Sindhu falters at the net and second game point for Yamaguchi.
21-21 The Japanese goes long, at the baseline.
20-21 Yamaguchi's forehand winner gives her a game point.
20-19 Game point for Sindhu.
19-19 Yamaguchi gets it short and Sindhu goes on top of it and fires a forehand winner.
18-19 A long, gruelling rally ends after Yamaguchi finds the net and is understandably unhappy.
17-19 Good play by Yamaguchi. She plays it to Sindhu's deep backhand corner and the Indian misses it.
17-18 Sindhu is staging a comeback. Yamaguchi goes long.
16-18 The Indian closes it. Sindhu plays on to Yamguchi''s left, crosscourt, and the Japanese's weak return is enough for Sindhu to clinch the point.
13-17 A fair lead for Yamaguchi as Sindhu falters after a long rally.
13-16 No answers from Sindhu to a Yamaguchi trail blazer. The Japanese pounces on it and sends a forehand smash, a winner, to Sindhu's left.
12-15 Sindhu couldn't control her shot and sends it long, past the baseline.
12-14 The straight smash does the trick for Sindhu.
11-14 A good drop shot by Yamaguchi. Sindhu falters the return.
10-13 A good winner from Sindhu. The shuttle dropped short in a jiffy and Yamaguchi can't reach it.
9-12 Yamaguchi hits hard, towards the deep corner of Sindhu, and the Indian misjudges and the shuttle falls well inside the baseline.
9-11 Sindhu closes on the gap. She has upped her net game.
7-11 A neat drop shot by Sindhu gives her the point.
6-11 Sindhu plays a soft but Yamaguchi takes it on and blasts it past Sindhu, to her right.
6-9 An excellent cross court forehand winner from Sindhu.
5-9 Yamaguchi almost plays a repeat and Sindhu is found wanting.
5-8 Yamaguchi just shoots one to Sindhu's left and the Indian, not moving well, misses it by a mile. A terrific forehand winner that was.
5-6 Back-to-back points from Sindhu. She executes the drop shot well and Yamaguchi could only return, way outside.
3-6 A terrific winner from Yamaguchi. Sindhu is just losing her footing here, a bit.
3-4 Yamaguchi takes the lead. Sindhu gets to the net and touches it in trying a delicate drop.
3-3 Cleverly played by Yamaguchi. She just played it soft and it just fell short of Sindhu's reach.
3-2 Yamaguchi goes to the right of Sindhu, at the backline, and the shuttle just drop short of the line and Sindhu misjudges it.
1-0 Yamaguchi goes long, at the baseline, and Sindhu opens the scoring.
Sindhu in yellow and Yamaguchi in blue to start proceedings.
Yamaguchi has qualified as ranked No. 3 and Sindhu qualified as No. 6.
By the way, Yamaguchi is the defending champion. She triumphed in the finals last year in Dubai.
Sindhu holds an edge in the head-to-head between these two players. She is 9-4 up and the last three meetings have gone Sindhu's way.
Sindhu and Yamaguchi are out on the court and warming up.
We have a doubles match between Mohammad Ahsan/Hendra Setiawan and Hiroyuki Endo/Yuta Watanabe going on. Sindhu's match will follow this match and it will be Sameer on court post that.
The preview for the tournament can be read here .
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