• Source:JND
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BWF World Championships 2025: Two-time Olympic medallist PV Sindhu conjured a late-match surge to outmanoeuvre Malaysia's world No. 40 Letshanaa Karupathevan and secure a spot in the women's singles pre-quarterfinals of the BWF World Championships here on Wednesday.

The former world champion had to dig deep to turn the match around, staging a remarkable comeback from 12-18 down in the opener to seal a 21-19, 21-15 victory.

It was a case of déjà vu for Sindhu, who had seemed sluggish against Bulgaria's Kaloyana Nalbantova in her opener on Tuesday. Against Letshanaa too, she worked to find her tempo early and trailed throughout, incompetent to build pressure on the Malaysian's defence.

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Letshanaa began aggressively against Sindhu, releasing a smash to the Indian's forehand side that went unchallenged before following it up with a sheer drop that bussed the line. Sindhu struggled to find her rhythm and trailed 1-4.

The Malaysian's varied game plan paid dividends as she mixed her down-the-line smashes with quick net play. Sindhu was unable to build pressure or string together points, and Letshanaa went into the mid-game interval with an 11-8 lead.

Technically sound and physically healthy, Letshanaa's faster, striking game revealed Sindhu's inconsistency as the Indian slipped behind further. At 18-12, the Malaysian looked firmly in control.

But Sindhu mounted her comeback with six straight points as she levelled the score at 18-all, aided by an error from Letshanaa, who sent a smash wide under pressure. Sindhu kept her momentum going at 19-19, producing a sterile smash to grasp the game point, which was also the first time she led in the game.

A fortuitous net cord winner further stretched her cushion as she went up 10-6 at the mid-point of the second game.

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Sindhu looked in control, her hits finding range and her deviations upsetting the Malaysian, who kept battling before the Indian held seven match points following a couple of long shots from Letshanaa. Sindhu pocketed the match when the Malaysian miscued a forehand.

Earlier, the Indian mixed doubles pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto sealed a place in the pre-quarterfinals with a 21-11, 21-16 triumph over Ireland's Joshua Magee and Moya Ryan.

The Indian duo will next lock horns with fifth seeds Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet of Hong Kong for a place in the quarterfinals.