PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal won their respective semi-finals in contrasting fashion to set up a mouth-watering women’s singles summit showdown at the 83rd Senior National Badminton Championships in Guwahati on Saturday, 16 February.
In a repeat of last edition's title clash at Nagpur, the two stalwarts will look to out-do each other and write another chapter in their on-field rivalry.
While Sindhu overcame a challenge from Assam's promising 19-year-old Ashmita Chaliha 21-10, 22-20 in the first semi-final, Nehwal got the better of Nagpur qualifier Vaishnavi Bhale, who was part of India's Uber Cup squad last year, 21-15, 21-14 to storm into the finals.
Nehwal had the last laugh against Sindhu in their last two encounters – both finals – at the Nationals and the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast last year.
While Nehwal has won the national title in 2006, 2007 and 2018, Sindhu will eye her third title, having clinched the trophy in 2011 and 2013.
“It will be just another match and I don’t think it will help me for All England, I will just look to focus and give my best.”PV Sindhu
Lakshya Sen in Men’s Final
In the men’s singles, 17-year-old Lakshya Sen – the reigning Asian junior champion, as well as a bronze medallist at the World Junior Championship in 2018 – secured his second final at the Nationals with a 21-15, 21-16 win over 2012 champion and 2014 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Parupalli Kashyap.
The teenager, who hails from Uttarakhand, had lost the title clash two editions previously to Sourabh Verma, and gets a chance to settle that score with the 26-year-old from Dhar too having booked his spot in the final.
Two-time winner Verma beat Mumbai’s Kaushal Dharmamer 21-14, 21-17 in his semi-final.