Sindhu outplays Schulz, set to face teenager Anmol in Hylo Open semifinals

File Photo: Sindhu’s pace and precision gave her Danish opponent little room to settle. | Photo Credit: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA

P. V. Sindhu beat Denmark’s Amalie Schulz 21-12, 21-10 in just 28 minutes to reach the semifinals of the Hylo Open, a BWF World Tour Super 500 event, in Saarbrücken, Germany, on Friday.

Fresh off her runner-up finish at last week’s French Open Super 750 tournament, Sindhu went with an aggressive, length-based game plan and raced to a 5-3 lead. The second-seeded Indian used steep downward clears and deep baseline exchanges to pin Schulz back.

Sindhu waited at the forecourt to attack with sharp, angled body smashes every time Schulz sent a short lift. She also needed to tighten the mid-court, where transitional errors could creep in, by keeping the net tight and cutting down on floating lifts so the 25-year-old Dane wouldn’t get easy attacking angles.

The 31-year-old Indian dictated the tempo against Schulz and led 11-6 at the first mid-game interval, using a sharp burst of aggressive play to pull away, pinning the Dane deep in the back corners with heavy, penetrating clears so she could take no initiative from the mid-court.

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She closed down the net and finished the rallies with steep, angled body smashes whenever Schulz replied with defensive or floating lifts, though she did give away a couple of cheap points near the baseline by misjudging the drift on deep shuttles and rushing her net pickups.

World No. 8 Sindhu closed out the first game against Schulz 21-12 with a final surge as she shut down the Dane’s mid-court options by keeping her clears deep, pinning the baseline and pouncing on every loose lift with sharp, steep body smashes. Her length management was flawless, and she moved swiftly from defence to attack at the forecourt.

Sindhu was in commanding form in the second game and led 14-5, putting the Danish World No. 46 under constant pressure with a high-tempo display that forced error after error.

Whenever Schulz tried to float the shuttle out of trouble, Sindhu leapt to intercept with steep, punishing body smashes. She also mixed in cross-court drops that left Schulz scrambling.

Sindhu did gave away a couple of cheap points by rushing her net tumbles and clipping the tape but the big lead kept her well ahead of the Dane.

Sindhu will next face Anmol Kharb after the teenager’s 21-17, 18-21, 21-16 win over sixth seed Unnati Hooda in an all-Indian quarterfinal.