Thanks for tuning into Sportstar's live coverage of the Asian Championships women's singles quarterfinal where India's P V Sindhu beat China's He Bing Jiao 21-9, 13-21, 21-19.. This was Nihit Sachdeva taking you through the action as it unfurled at the Muntinlupa Sports Complex in Manila, Philippines.
REPORT:
In their first meeting since the Tokyo Olympics bronze medal playoff, P V Sindhu beats China's He Bing Jiao in a one-hour 16 minutes thriller to make it to the semifinals of the Asian Championships, thereby confirming her second medal at the event. Ahead at 16-9 in the third game, it looked Sindhu's win was sealed. However, the Chinese shuttler had other plans as she made a stunning comeback to make 17-15. The nerved were clearly showing as Sindhu failed to convert three game point opportunities but at the end, she got the win she well and truly deserved.
In the semifinals, Sindhu will face either defending champion and top-seed Akane Yamaguchi of Japan or Pornpawee Chochuwong of Thailand.
THIRD GAME
21-19: NO, SHE CAN'T!!! This time the net Gods favour Sindhu as the shuttle goes just over it and the only thing He Bing Jiao could do was lift it back into the net.
20-19: Unbelievable fightback from He Bing Jiao. Three match points saved. Can she make it four?
20-18: MY GOD. A brilliant rally at the end of which Sindhu hits a delightful net shot but guess what, the shuttle hangs on the top of the net and then lands in her own half.
20-16: Another long shot from the Chinese and four game-point opportunities for Sindhu.
19-16: That body smash from Sindhu went like a tracer bullet. He Bing Jiao did not even realise when the shuttle hit her.
18-16: Sindhu controls the rally all the away but at THE moment, sends one into the net.
17-15: CHALLENGE. He Bing Jiao challenges the call unsuccessfully. Her lob landed over the baseline.
16-15: After all that confusion, we're back to the actual game. Sindhu's overhead clear goes wrong as the shuttle takes a deflection off her racquet and goes out.
There is some confusion regarding the score. More drama to this match that's already set for a nail-biting finish.
16-14. FIVE IN A ROW. Another challenge from Sindhu but the hawkeye clearly shows that He Bing Jiao's cross court lob, helped by the drift, landed on the line.
16-13: Commentator's curse, eh? Four points in a row for Bing Jiao.
16-12: CHALLENGE. Sindhu drives it long over the baseline and then contests the decision unsuccessfully.
16-9: The most impressive bit about Sindhu in this game has been that she has not allowed Bing Jiao run away with a flurry of points. Whenever she has lost one, she has made sure that the next one is not simply gifted away.
14-9: Another soft return from Sindhu, unable to send it over the net. Five-point game and match now for He Bing Jiao.
14-8: Tried to be too deceptive there, Sindhu and made a mess of the slice.
13-7: Patient play from Sindhu as she keeps He Bing Jiao on the back court without allowing any smash. Eventually, the Chinese shuttler hits the net.
12-7: A weak return from Sindhu. He Bing Jiao on the charge. Now is the time.
11-5: A clever cross court smash from Sindhu catches He Bing Jiao off guard who is too late in getting the racquet on the shuttle. Five-point lead at the mid-game interval in the decider for Sindhu.
10-5: Unforced error. Into the net. He Bing Jiao, what are you doing?
8-5: He Bing Jiao is slowly chipping away at Sindhu's lead. From 7-2, it is now 8-5.
8-3: Crushing body smash from Sindhu. Point taken.
7-2: Make that six. A long-ish rally and Sindhu ends it with a cross court lob, that took ages to come down, landing just on the line.
6-2: Five poins in a row for Sindhu. He Bing Jiao once again is holding her left shoulder.
5-2: Early momentum for the Indian as Bing Jiao's return can only find the net.
4-2: A perfectly controlled rally from Sindhu and she finishes it with a quick smash out of a diving He Bing Jiao's reach.
3-2: CHALLENGE. This time it is Sindhu who says that her lob landed on the baseline and the hawkeye proves she is right.
1-2: More frustration for Sindhu as she tries to lift the shuttle but only manages to hit it into the net.
1-1: Sindhu's lob lands over the baseline. Correctly judged by He Bing Jiao.
SECOND GAME
13-21: He Bing Jiao wins the second set. This has been quite a turnaround. Hang in there for the decider folks.
13-20: CHALLENGE. He Bing Jiao's lob landed over the baseline, She didn't think so and opted for the challenge but the review shows she was wrong.
12-19: Near miss for Bing Jiao. Cross court drop lands just misses the line.
11-18: Errors piling up on Sindhu's end now. Interesting.
11-15: Incredible defensive work from Bing Jiao. She was all over the place but the final retrieve from the back court, however late it was, manages to cross the net and land inside the court, much to Sindhu's dismay.
10-14: Three points in a row to resume the second game. He Bing Jiao has realised that she has to stretch the lead as much as possible.
10-11: Some respite for world no. 9 He Bing Jiao as she takes a solitary point lead into the mid-game interval.
10-10: Nice defending from Bing Jiao forces Sindhu to look for the net shot and commit a mistake.
9-9: Not for too long though. A powerful overhead smash down-the-line from the Chinese player and the point is hers.
9-8: For the first time in the second game, Sindhu takes the lead.
7-8: Let it go. Let it go. Let the drift do its thing. That is what seems to be the mantra here as He Bing Jiao drives one way over Sindhu's head and the baseline as well.
6-7: Lovely shot from Bing Jiao this time. She bends down to retrieve and executes a cross court net shot that lands well inside the court.
6-6: Parity restored. Another unforced error from He Bing Jiao and the shuttle lands in the alley.
4-6: Body smash brings a weak return from Sindhu and He Bing Jiao gladly kills it. Much closer second game.
3-5: Unlucky. Sindhu's clear took a touch off the net allowing He Bing Jiao to hit a drive and then go for the Kill.
2-4: Much better from the Chinese player. She forced Sindhu back, got the high lift and then buried the shuttle into the court.
2-3: A rare error from Sindhu as she is unable to execute the net shot.
1-1: The shoulder is not allowing He Bing Jiao to play freely. A weak return to a strong smash from Sindhu.
FIRST GAME
21-9: Sindhu wins the first game. Sensational play from the Indian and she ends it in style with a down the line smash. The Chinese shuttler dives to retrieve it but the shuttle only hits the net.
20-9: He Bing Jiao is holding her shoulder after every point. If she is carrying an injury, this could be over soon.
19-7: Excellent deception from Sindhu. The Indian caresses the shuttle and makes it land just over the net.
17-7: Aggressive. Cross court smash from Sindhu and Bing Jiao is a mere spectator.
16-5: Bing Jiao tries the net shot but it does not manage to get the birdie over the net.
15-4: Finally, something goes right for Bing Jiao as the shuttle, left by Sindhu, lands right on the baseline.
14-3: Quick body smash from Sindhu wins her the point. No long rallies so far.
11-2: The drift working to Sindhu's advantage as Bing Jiao's drive goes flying past the baseline. Sindhu leads 11-2 at the mid-game interval.
9-2: Unforced errors increasing from the Chinese player. Seven-point lead for Sindhu.
7-2: Error in judgment from Bing Jiao as Sindhu's serve lands well inside the baseline.
4-2: This time the drift favours Bing Jiao as Sindhu sends one over the baseline.
4-1: Quick overhead smash from Sindhu and no chance for the Chinese shuttler to return that.
3-0: Bing Jiiao tries to find the line with a flick from the back court but it lands in the alley.
1-0: He Bing Jiao serves first and the drift is clearly visible. Bing Jiao's return goes long and the first point goes to Sindhu.
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Warm-up is done. Let the game begin!
1:30 PM: The quarterfinal between P V Sindhu and He Bing Jiao is about to begin. Both shuttlers have stepped onto the court.
1:20 PM: Later in the day, India's top-ranked men's doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty will also be in action. The third-seeded Indian pair will face fifth seeds Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik from Malaysia in the quarterfinals. The last Indian men's double pair to win a medal at the Asian Championships was the duo of iconic singles players Syed Modi and Prakash Padukone, who won silver in 1978. Check the full list below.
1:10 PM: List of Indian medallists at Asian Championships:-
1 PM: The only Indian shuttler to win gold at the Asian Championships is Dinesh Khanna and that happened in the second edition of the event when in 1965, Khanna beat Thailand's Sangob Rattanusorn 15-3, 15-11 in the final in Lucknow on November 14. Khanna later won bronze medal in the 1969 edition held in Manila.
12:53 PM: Asian Championships are being held for the first time since 2019. The 2020 and 2021 editions were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, India's wait for a gold medal at the continental event has been way longer.
Head to head: Matches played - 16, Wins for Sindhu - 7, Wins for He Bing Jiao - 9
PREVIEW:
Nine months after a bronze medal playoff at the Tokyo Olympics, India's P V Sindhu and China's He Bing Jiao will once again face each other, this time in the quarterfinals of the Asian Championships in Manila, Philippines on Friday and whoever wins will be assured of at least a bronze.
Two-time Olympic medallist and former world champion Sindhu has made it to the last eight stage of the continental event after tough wins in the first two rounds. The Indian, who won bronze in the 2014 edition, got a scare but prevailed to beat Chinese Taipei's Pai Yu Po 18-21, 27-25, 21-9 in the opening round. In the second round, fourth-seeded Sindhu defeated Singapore's Yue Yann Jaslyn Hooi 21-16, 21-16.
Fifth-seeded He Big Jiao has had a similar route. The left-handed Chinese shuttler, who has bronze and silver medals from 2017 and 2019 editions respectively, came back from one game down to beat Japan's Aya Ohori 18-21, 21-13, 21-13 in the first round before comfortably winning 21-18, 21-14 against Malaysia's Kisona Selvaduray in the second.
In the tournaments following the 2021 Summer Games, world number seven Sindhu has consistently made deep runs while clinching Syed Modi International and Swiss Open titles. World No. 9 He Bing Jiao too has fared well, winning bronze medal at the world championships along with German Open and Korea Masters trophies. Also, she was a member of the Chinese side that won Sudirman Cup.
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