Indian veteran P.V. Sindhu has achieved plenty of firsts as she gunned down Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi for the Japan Open women’s singles title in Tokyo.
She is the first Indian to achieve the feat in winning her first ever BWF Tour Super 750 title with a composed 21-17, 21-17 victory.
Her win over Yamaguchi, a three-time world champion, was her first over her long time rival in the last seven meetings. Sindhu had lost to Yamaguchi in their three previous encounters this year alone.
The 31-year-old last victory over the imposing Japanese, two years her junior, came at the Thailand Open just over four years ago.
The Japan Open win was also her first title in two years, after her victory at the lower ranked Syed Modi International in 2024. The final in Tokyo was also her first final since that tournament.
It had been an eventful march into the final for Sindhu. She received a walkover in the quarter-finals following the withdrawal of Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara and in the semi-finals, her opponent Chen Yufei of China withdrew injured with Sindhu leading 21-19, 15-10.
But the lanky shuttler had shown her intent here with the attacking display against Yufei and also when she defeated world number five Han Yue of China in the second round.
The final was no different with Sindhu adopting an attacking display. She took an early lead before taking the first game. She was also in control of the second. She clinched the title when Yamaguchi hit a shot that was called in, only for Sindhu to successfully overturn it with a challenge.
The men’s singles title went to in-form Frenchman Christo Popov. A day after stunning world number one Shi Yuqi of China in the semi-finals, Popov stormed to a 21-11, 21-19 win over Japan’s Koki Watanabe in the final.
It is the second title of the season for the reigning BWF World Tour Finals champion. He has also won the German Open earlier this year, defeating sibling Toma Junior Popov for the crown.
Second seeds Jia Yifan-Zhang Shuxian of China and the Korean duo of Kim Hye-Jeong-Kong Hee-yong were locked in a marathon women’s doubles final.
It was the Korean sixth seeds that prevailed in the gruelling 99-minute match-up to clinch the title with a 14-21, 21-15, 30-29 win. Despite the disparity in rankings, the Korean paird now hold a 5-1 winning record against Yifan-Shuxian.
It was also sweet revenge for Hye-jeong-Hee-yong, who were beaten by the Chinese duo when they last met at the final of the China Masters last year.
Mixed doubles top ranked pair Feng Yanzhe-Huang Dongping of China were also forced to go the distance by Hong Kong’s Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet before chalking up a 21-14, 14-21, 21-15 win after a 72-minute battle.
In the men’s doubles, second seeds Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Shohibul Fikri pulled off an upset 21-19, 21-17 win over top ranked Korean pair of Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae.
It was their first win over the Koreans in four meetings and their second title of the year, having also won the Singapore Open earlier this year.
FINAL RESULTS
Men’s singles: Christo Popov (Fra) bt Koki Watanabe (Jpn) 21-11, 21-19
Men’s doubles: Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Shohibul Fikri (Ina) bt Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae (Kor) 21-19, 21-17
Women’s singles: P.V. 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
