Ace Indian shuttlers P V Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth stamped their authority in Malaysia Masters as they sailed into the semifinals of their respective events at the USD 120,000 Grand Prix Gold event here today.
Third seed Sindhu had come into the quarterfinal match with a 7-2 record against her opponent and she hardly broke any sweat as she brushed aside Indonesia’s Lindaweni Fanetri 21-10 21-10 in the women’s singles.
Two-time bronze medallist at the World Championship, Sindhu will face off either top seed Sung Ji Hyun of Korea or fifth seed Sayaka Sato of Japan in her next match at the Spice stadium.
Second seed Srikanth too brought his best to the table as he saw off China’s Huang Yuxiang 21-15 21-14 without much ado in the men’s singles contest that lasted 33 minutes.
The World No. 9 Indian will take on Malaysia’s Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin tomorrow. Srikanth had beaten the local player in a gruelling three-match contest during the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold last year.
Sindhu, who had clinched the Macau Open last year, opened up a 5-1 lead early on but Fanetri clawed back at 7-7 before the Indian zoomed ahead to pocket the first game.
Things didn’t change in the second game as well as Sindhu brought more aggression in her game and dominated the proceedings completely.
In the men’s singles contest, Srikanth showed his prowess as he ran away with the opening game without any fight from Huang.
In the second game, the Chinese opened up a 8-4 lead but Srikanth drew parity with four consequtive points and engaged in a hard battle with the Chinese till 15-14. He then stepped on the gas and shut the door on Huang.