Sung Ji-hyun breaks Indian hearts, sets up final with Tai Tzu-ying in Dubai

South Korea's Sung Ji-hyun ousted Indian badminton Olympian and local favourite PV Sindhu on Saturday in the Dubai World Superseries Finals semi-final.

Sung Ji-hyun of South Korea plays a shot against PV Sindhu of India during the women's singles semi-final on Saturday. Stringer / AFP / December 17, 2016

DUBAI // Ruthless in breaking Indian hearts last night by knocking PV Sindhu out, Sung Ji-hyun will be looking for revenge against No 1 Tai Tzu-ying as they battle for the Dubai World Superseries Finals women’s single title.

Monk-like on the court as she shut out the din created by another huge Indian turnout at the Hamdan Sports Complex, Sung defeated Sindhu 21-15, 18-21, 21-15 to set up a repeat of the 2014 final, which Tai won 21-17, 21-12.

In the men’s singles final, Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen, the world No 4 who defeated Korean Son Wan-ho 21-17, 21-19 in the semis, will lock horns with China’s Tian Houwei, who knocked out Jan O Jorgensen 21-17, 19-21, 21-13.

“There was great support for Sindhu, but sometimes that can be a negative as well and put pressure on the player because so many people are cheering for her,” said Sung. “But for me, I just tried to block all that noise out and just focus on the game. It didn’t really matter much to me.

“Now, I am really looking forward to winning the final tomorrow. I lost the 2014 final against Tai and I am really keen to win this time.”

Meeting Sung for the fifth time this year, Sindhu, who had won three of their previous four duels in 2016, looked a bit out of sorts as she lost the first game. Urged on by the fans, she did bounce back to win the second, but could not keep pace with Sung in the third as the Korean bolted off the blocks for a 4-0 lead and then cruised home comfortably.

“I am a bit disappointed at the moment, but overall, it has been a good year,” said Sindhu, winner of a silver medal at the Rio Olympics. “I think I did well this week as well. Reaching the semis on your first appearance in a Superseries Finals, I think that is always good.”

Earlier, in the first semi-final, world No 1 Tai, up against an opponent she had never beaten before in five matches, finally managed to down Sun Yu 21-19, 21-19 to reach the final for a third time.

A finalist on her Superseries Finals debut in 2013, when she lost to China’s Li Xuerui, Tai, 22, won the title 12 months later in Dubai, defeating Sung.

Like Tai, Tian also had overcome the odds in the first men’s semi-final. Coming to Dubai, he had only one win in seven matches against Jorgensen, and had lost five on the trot.

The world No 7 from China, however, managed to break that disappointing run against the Dane in their final group match on Friday and he carried that confidence into the semis, racing to the finish from 11-11 in the third.

“Tian played well,” said Jorgensen, the world No 3 who made history last month when he became the first non-Asian to win the China Open. “I think he changed the tactics a lot. I really couldn’t cope with the things he came up with. That is one of the reasons I couldn’t get any rhythm and I couldn’t find my shots. Way too many mistakes. Well done to him.

“Sometimes you really need to go in and get physical, and I didn’t really dare to do it. I made too many mistakes and gave away some easy chances.”

Buoyed by his win over Jorgensen, Tian, who lost to Chinese compatriot Lin Dan in the 2016 All England Open final in March, is now looking forward to the final against Axelsen, as he bids for the first Superseries crown of his career, and his first tournament triumph since the 2013 Australian Open Grand Prix Gold.

“Jorgensen had more victories against me in the past, so he was probably favourite coming into this game, but I was prepared,” said Tian, 24. “Now, heading into the final, I feel really confident because of this win and I hope I can play another good match.

“Of course, I have to stay grounded, stay focused and try not to get too excited about all this.”

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