BWF World C’ships 2019 final as it happened: Sindhu creates history with a stunning win in the final
Sindhu currently leads the head-to-head 8-7 against Okuhara.
That is all from us from the evening, one to remember for a long, long, long time!
8.14 pm: Zheng Si Wei and Huang Ya Qiong save China the blushes as they win the mixed doubles gold. This is the first time China will go back with just one gold from the championship since the 1995 edition. And yet another one-sided final!
8.00 pm: Here is what PV Sindhu had to say after that historic gold medal.
7.39 pm: India’s campaign in para world championships comes to and end with a silver after Tarun Dhillon retires in the final against Lucas Mazur when leading 14-13 in the opening game. India ends with 3 gold, 4 silver and 5 bronze medals.
Read more here.
7.34 pm: Lest we forget, a very special day for Sai Praneeth too. The first Indian male shuttler in 36 years to medal at the World Championships!
7.14 pm: Back to back World Championships gold medals for Kento Momota, the unstoppable Japan star.
7.03 pm: WHAT A PHOTO!
6.53 pm: Bronze medallist as a teenager. Silver medallist at 22. World Champion at 24. Be very, very proud PV Sindhu.
Here’s a quick highlight reel.
6.30 pm: The emotions overflow as the Indian national anthem is played. What a tournament Sindhu has had... Peak Sindhu!
6.19 pm: WORLD CHAMPION PV SINDHU. Has that sunk in yet for you? Just for the record, Sindhu won the final with a down the line smash and the celebration felt all to simple, really, perhaps it was so simple for the Indian. Perhaps it did not sink in what she just did. Perhaps she is not done yet. She wins 21-7, 21-7 in just 37 minutes!
Second game stats:
6.15 pm: “I am proud of the fans here, thanks for their support. Thanks to my coach Kim [Ji Hyun] and Gopi sir and all the support staff. And I dedicate this award to my mom, it’s her birthday today. Happy birthday mom”, says the first Indian Badminton World Champion. The crowd then (if I heard correctly) sang happy birthday! WHAT A MOMENT.
6.13 pm: Olympic silver medallist PV Sindhu... is now World Champion PV Sindhu. And how!
6.11 pm: History has been created!! Sindhu becomes the first Indian to become a badminton World Champion. What a match! Outstanding play.
6.10 pm: You know how they say in sport that the scoreline sometimes does not tell you the full story of a match? This was not one of those occasions. PV Sindhu just blew Nozomi Okuhara away. We cannot quite believe what we saw. Unreal.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 21-7 Nozomi Okuhara
GOLD MEDAL FOR PV SINDHU!!!!!!!! SHE HAS DONE IT!!! HISTORY MADE!!!
PV Sindhu 21-7, 20-7 Nozomi Okuhara
Service over with an error from Sindhu. But Okuhara sends a lift long again. THIRTEEN MATCH POINTS.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 19-6 Nozomi Okuhara
A lift that goes long from Sindhu. Can Okuhara find a few points on the trot? No, she can’t. More aggression from Sindhu as she kills two rallies with two super aggressive points. TWO POINTS AWAY!
PV Sindhu 21-7, 17-5 Nozomi Okuhara
Well, Sindhu can get something wrong today then... an unsuccessful challenge. Never mind though, she has the serve back with Nozomi sending a push long.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 16-4 Nozomi Okuhara
A good retrieval by Okuhara but guess what, Sindhu is waiting at the net. Dumps it across the net with disdain.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 15-4 Nozomi Okuhara
Three straight points to start after the interval and the last of them was actually a good drop shot that just went wide. Wonder why Okuhara didn’t challenge that. Sindhu makes it SIX straight points with a superb smash.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 11-4 Nozomi Okuhara
I am running out of adjectives and ways to describe how dominant this has been from Sindhu so far, so just have a look at the scoreline: it’s exactly as dominant as it indicates.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 10-4 Nozomi Okuhara
Sindhu is playing so well that Okuhara is trying for perhaps too much and making errors. The commentators: “This is devastating.” As we say that, couple of loose points from Sindhu to give Okuhara a window of opportunity. Which is shut in no time.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 9-2 Nozomi Okuhara
“Okuhara is hanging on to this match with dear life, Sindhu is playing just magnificently,” says Morten Frost. Unreal, what we are witnessing.
Abhijeet Kulkarni: The 28-shot rally which gave Sindhu a 3-1 lead in the second game is why the Indian has been so dominating so far. She has been able to move Okuhara all across the court with precision and power.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 5-2 Nozomi Okuhara
Sindhu sends a lift long and then produces a stunning return winner - a crosscourt flick at the net. Touch-play there and then power in the next as she sends another powerful smash that Okuhara doesn’t return. A loud come on from Sindhu! Okuhara then sends a lift long but challenges it anyway, seemingly just to catch some breath. Well out, that was.
PV Sindhu 21-7, 3-1 Nozomi Okuhara
First real signs of frustration from Okuhara as she hits a tame backhand into the net but she follows that up with a super point tp get the serve back. But Sindhu constructs a sensational point, moving Okuhara to all four corners and then finishing with a crosscourt smash! What a point by the Indian.
First game stats: Sindhu just dominated from the word go, but be wary of Okuhara’s comeback who started to find her rhythm at the back-end of that game.
PV Sindhu 21-7 Nozomi Okuhara
WOW. JUST WOW. Its a repeat of the scoreline from the opening game against Chen in the semifinals and Sindhu has raced to a 21-7 scoreline in the opener and drawn first blood. Sensational body smash to clinch the opener.
PV Sindhu 20-7 Nozomi Okuhara
13 game points for Sindhu!
PV Sindhu 19-7 Nozomi Okuhara
A superb rally from both players (one of the rare ones so far) and it ends with a superb disguised drop from the backcourt by Okuhara. Sindhu follows that up with an aggressive point. Sindhu has been getting to the shuttle very early and not letting Okuhara settle into any rhythm but the Japanese is starting to find her footing now too.
PV Sindhu 17-4 Nozomi Okuhara
WOW. This is just something else. Okuhara trying everything, Sindhu has answers for it all. In attack and defence. The loud come ons from early in the game have given way to quiet fist bumps. Confident stuff from Sindhu. Okuhara finally wins two points on the trot but Sindhu responds with a super drop.
PV Sindhu 14-2 Nozomi Okuhara
Okuhara has upped the pace but she is not getting any room to attack, Sindhu is keeping everything flat even in defence. She has interestingly gone for Shots that were probably heading wide from Okuhara on more than occasion so far, showing great trust in her shot-making skills.
PV Sindhu 11-2 Nozomi Okuhara
SINDHU IS ON FIRE! What a start to the match. Two super-quick rallies to head into the interval with a massive lead. Job well begun by Sindhu... but Okuhara is more than capable from bouncing back here. She has not actually played that bad, just Sindhu has been too good so far.
Abhijeet Kulkarni: Well well. Sindhu has turned on the heat in this game after that long rally. She has been aggressive and pro-active with her shot selection.
PV Sindhu 8-2 Nozomi Okuhara
Mind you, Okuhara had a similar start against Intanon in the semifinal too before she bounced back. On the other hand, Sindhu was similarly ruthless against Chen Yufei. Basically, nothing to infer from this yet (other than Okuhara having to pick up her intensity as she stops a run of 7 straight points for Sindhu).
PV Sindhu 6-1 Nozomi Okuhara
Confident stuff from Sindhu. A good inside-out smash to Okuhara’s backhand that does not come back. Then one to Okuhara’s right that she did not have a chance to even get to.
PV Sindhu 4-1 Nozomi Okuhara
Three points on the trot for Sindhu, with good judgement at the baseline and then am up-tempo rally. Fist bumps and come ons already from the Indian. Good start.
PV Sindhu 1-1 Nozomi Okuhara
A longish rally to start off, surprise surprise. Sindhu attempts a spin shot at the net but doesn’t clear. Okuhara sends a push wide. Serves exchanged.
PV Sindhu 0-0 Nozomi Okuhara
On the referee’s right, Okuhara. To the left, Sindhu. Love all. PLAY!
5.31 pm: “If this match is half as good as the 2017 final, we are in for a treat,” says commentator Gill Clark. Cannot argue there. The formalities are done. Chapter XVI of Sindhu-Okuhara is upon us!
5.28 pm: Sindhu will face her most familiar rival for a third shot at the title. Both the players are 24 years old, both are former world No 2s, both are Olympic medal-winners and both have had relatively lean seasons by their high standards. The similarities end there though, with their style of play anything but alike.
For Sindhu’s part, she will be taking on a higher-ranked player for the third straight match at Basel 2019.
Toss update: Looked like Sindhu opts for sides, Okuhara will receive the first serve. Players are warming up.
5.26 pm: The players are walking out! The excitement is building!
Coming in to the tournament, Okuhara had a 29/10 win-loss record in 2019, compared to Sindhu’s 19/9. It has been a mixed year for the former world champion, much like Sindhu herself, with no major title won yet. Her best results have been finals appearances at Japan Open, Australian Open and Singapore open so far, meaning three silver medals compared to Sindhu’s solitary final appearance at Indonesia Open. As it stands, one of the two finallists are set to clinch their first title of 2019 and it is going to be at the biggest tournament of the year.
5.23 pm: Okuhara’s form at the 2019 World Championships:
Like Sindhu, the Japanese shuttler also had a first round-bye. Okuhara dropped her first game of the tournament in the semi-final in Basel, after having won her first three matches in straight games. She made light work of good players like former world No 2 Sung Ji Hyun and China’s He Bing Jao before 2013 World Champion Intanon stretched her all the way in what was a brutal, sensational semi-final. The Thai shuttler won the first game 21-17, after trailing 12-17, by winning nine straight points while Okuhara herself had won nine straight to bounce back from 8-17.
5.18 pm: Just enough time for you read our preview on how Sindhu can make sure she emerges victorious against Okuhara.
5.16 pm: The women’s doubles final, a repeat of 2018, was expected to be a classic. It was and then some. Time for medal presentations and then... it’s PV Sindhu’s match.
5.09 pm: The women’s double final, a repeat of last year, was expected to be a classic and after a dull first game, it exceeded all expectations.
5.05 pm: Fukushima and Hirota have been left heartbroken for the THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR. Nagahara and Matsutomo have won back-to-back gold medals. With their SIXTH match point!! WHAT A FINAL.
5.03 pm: The Japanese doubles stars have already served a nail-bitter. Fukishima and Hiroto save five match points in the decider and now have a match point opportunity themselves. That has been saved by the defending world champs!!! MADNESS. 21-21 in the decider.
4.54 pm: You can read about India’s Para Badminton Worlds medallists here. And more reading for you in the tweet below, as we wait for Sindhu’s match which is imminent.
4.52 pm: Right, doesn’t seem to be long left for the Sindhu match now... the defending champs have taken a 17-12 lead in the final game.
4.51 pm: Some great news from Basel already as Pramod Bhagat has won two gold medals in the Para Badminton Worlds while Manasi Joshi won gold defeat No 1 seed Parul Parmar.
4.45 pm: Some more reading ahead of the final as the defending women’s doubles champs take a 11-9 lead into the change of ends for the decider...
Want to know how close the Sindhu-Okuhara rivalry has been? Starting with the Glasgow final the order of winners goes like this: Okuhara, Sindhu, Okuhara, Sindhu, Okuhara, Sindhu, Sindhu, Okuhara, Sindhu
4.31 pm: OF COURSE! This women’s doubles final was never going to be straightforward! Fukushima and Hirota needed five game points to force a decider against the reigning World Champions.
4.29 pm: Here’s a look at the previous meetings between Okuhara and Sindhu...
Tournament | Scoreline | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Indonesia Open 2019 | Nozomi Okuhara | 14-21, 7-21 | PV Sindhu | July 2019 |
Singapore Open 2019 | Nozomi Okuhara | 21-7, 21-11 | PV Sindhu | April 2019 |
BWF World Tour Finals 2018 | Nozomi Okuhara | 19-21, 17-21 | PV Sindhu | December 2018 |
BWF World Championships 2018 | Nozomi Okuhara | 17-21, 19-21 | PV Sindhu | August 2018 |
Thailand Open 2019 | Nozomi Okuhara | 21-15, 21-18 | PV Sindhu | July 2018 |
All England Open 2018 | Nozomi Okuhara | 22-20, 18-21, 18-21 | PV Sindhu | March 2018 |
Japan Open 2017 | Nozomi Okuhara | 21-18, 21-8 | PV Sindhu | September 2017 |
Korea Open 2017 | Nozomi Okuhara | 20-22, 21-11,18-21 | PV Sindhu | September 2017 |
BWF World Championships 2017 | Nozomi Okuhara | 21-19, 20-22, 22-20 | PV Sindhu | August 2017 |
Singapore Open 2017 | Nozomi Okuhara | 21-10, 15-21, 20-22 | PV Sindhu | April 2017 |
Rio 2016 Olympic Games | Nozomi Okuhara | 19-21, 10-21 | PV Sindhu | August 2016 |
Badminton Asia Team Championships 2016 | Nozomi Okuhara | 18-21, 21-12, 21-12 | PV Sindhu | February 2016 |
Malaysia Masters 2015 | Nozomi Okuhara | 19-21, 21-13, 21-8 | PV Sindhu | January 2015 |
Hong Kong Open 2014 | Nozomi Okuhara | 21-17, 13-21, 21-11 | PV Sindhu | November 2014 |
Badminton Asia Youth Under 19 Championships 2012 | Nozomi Okuhara | 21-18, 17-21, 20-22 | PV Sindhu | July 2012 |
4,28 pm: Four game points from Fukushima / Hirota to force a decider and the reigning world champs have saved THREE of those.
4.18 pm: Fukushima and Hirota are fighting back in the second game, leading 15-12 now and are looking to force the decider.
4.17 pm: Our badminton expert Abhijeet Kulkarni was in Glasgow two years back when Sindhu and Okuhara served up that classic in 2017. He witnessed to greatness. Read his feature about that match as we warm up to the final here.
4.08 pm: Who can forget the breathtaking 73-shot rally which proved to be the most striking point of the 2017 final that lasted 110 minutes? Here’s a look at it again.
4.00 pm: We were all expecting a marathon women’s doubles match but the defending champs Matsutomo and Nagahara are running away with it! This is bit of a surprise. They have the opening game 21-11.
3.55 pm: The first final of the day is currently underway where two Japanese women’s doubles pairs are taking on each other. Current champions Matsutomo and Nagahara are leading the opening game against Fukushima and Hirota. Sindhu’s match is after this.
Hello all and welcome to our live coverage of what promises to be an epic day at the BWF Badminton World Championships 2019 in Basel!
The incredible PV Sindhu stands one win away from clinching the World Championships gold medal after storming into her third successive final with a straight-game win over All England champion Chen Yufei on Saturday.
Sindhu, who had claimed successive silver in the last two editions of the prestigious tournament beside two bronze, was a picture of perfection as she outclassed World No. 3 Chen of China 21-7 21-14 in a 40-minute semi-final.
The 24 year old from Hyderabad will face either 2017 winner Nozomi Okuhara of Japan in the summit clash on Sunday.
It will be a rematch of the
Sindhu will face her most familiar rival for a shot at the title. Both the players are 24 years old, both are former world No 2s, both are Olympic medal-winners and both have had relatively lean seasons by their high standards. The similarities end there though, with their style of play anything but alive.
In what is one of the most prolific rivalries of the current era, PV Sindhu currently leads the head-to-head 8-7. The two met in the 2017 Worlds final which the Japanese edged by a scoreline of 21-19, 20-22, 22-20.
Will Sindhu get her revenge and finally be a world champion? Stick around for all the updates from the match.
(With inputs from PTI)