PETALING JAYA: India's singles shuttler P.V. Sindhu ended her nearly two-year-long wait for a title after she put on a dominant performance to beat local favourite Akane Yamaguchi to win the Japan Open on Sunday (July 19).
The world No. 10 Sindhu beat the world No. 3 Yamaguchi 21-17, 21-17 in 50 minutes at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium and won her maiden Super 750 title, and the first win since the Syed Modi International in 2024.
Sindhu’s last victory in the higher-level BWF events came at the Super 500 Singapore Open four years ago in 2022, and the joy of winning was long overdue for the 31-year-old.
"I’m really happy and out of words. It’s been so long since I won and this is an important win for me," said Sindhu.
"Making the finals is one thing, but to win and be on the podium is another. I’m happy to come out of this on the positive side because it gives me confidence moving forward."
Sindhu will now be hoping to maintain her form when she plays in front of her home crowd during the World Championship in New Delhi from Aug 17-23.
Meanwhile, French men’s singles player Christo Popov also clinched his maiden Super 750 title after defeating another home player, Koki Watanabe 21-11, 21-19 in the final.
RESULTS
FINALS
Men’s singles: Christo Popov (Fra) bt Koki Watanabe (Jpn) 21-11, 21-19.
Men’s doubles: Fajar Alfian-Shohibul Fikri (Ina) bt Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae (Kor) 21-19, 21-17.
Women’s singles: PV Sindhu (Ind) bt Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) 21-17, 21-17.
Women’s doubles: Kim Hye-jeong-Kong Hee-yong (Kor) bt Jia Yifan-Zhang Shuxian (Chn) 14-21, 21-15, 30-29.
Mixed doubles: Feng Yanzhe-Huang Dongping (Chn) bt Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet (Hkg) 21-14, 14-21, 21-15.
