[Sport] Tokyo Olympics: PV Sindhu wins, says knockout tie against Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt not going to be easy

[Cyber Punk]

PV Sindhu eased into the knockout stage with a convincing victory against Cheung Ngan Yi of Hong Kong 21-9, 21-16 in her last Group J encounter at the Tokyo Olympics on Wednesday.
Sindhu will now face Mia Blichfeldt of Denmark in the round of 16 match. Blichfeldt drubbed Linda Zetchiri of Bulgaria 21-10, 21-3 in her last Group I match.

Sindhu’s victory against world No. 34 Cheung was never in doubt as the Indian defeated her five times before this match. As expected the world champion dominated the Hong Kong girl in the first game. However, in the second Cheung played well and troubled the Indian in the first part of the game. From 2-6, Cheung won five straight points to move to 7-6 and even went into the break with a one point lead at 11-10. But from 14-14, Sindhu changed the gears and won six straight points to move to 20-14.

The Indian played some delightful smashes and cross court drives to keep her opponent at bay.

 

Sindhu said this type of a match is important for her ahead of the tough matches. “I found my rhythm from the second game and I finished it off. It was a fast game and I made a couple of unforced errors. I changed my tactics and got things under control. This type of test is important before a big match," Sindhu told the BWF website.

Sindhu said that the match against Blichfeldt will not be easy. “It's not going to be an easy game. I need to recover well and come back stronger. I've played her a couple of times, every point is going to be important. She's an aggressive player so I need to be aggressive as well,” Sindhu told BWF.

The world No.7 enjoys a 4-1 win-loss record against Blichfeldt. The only victory for the Dane came this January at the Thailand Open. During that period, SIndhu was not in good shape. But the Indian exacted revenge at the Swiss Open in March when she ousted Blichfeldt in straight games 22-20, 21-10.

 

On the wind conditions at the stadium, Sindhu said, “Can't complain much about it because it's the same for every player. You have to learn to control the shuttle”.
Sindhu’s likely rivals in the quarterfinals (Akane Yamaguchi) and semifinals (Tai Tzu Ying) progressed to the knockouts without breaking much sweat.