Unnati stuns Sindhu for biggest win of young career
In 2022, the Rohtak shuttler got an opportunity to pick the former world champion's brains when the two were part of India's Uber Cup team. The self-confessed Sindhu fan had, back then, spoken about the learnings from playing alongside her idol while expressing her admiration for Sindhu's 'aggression and smashes.'
On Thursday, Unnati put those learnings to good effect as she used the same aggression and smashes to conjure the biggest win of her career, beating Sindhu 21-16, 19-21, 21-13 in 73 minutes to enter the women's singles quarter-finals of the $2 million China Open in Changzhou.
'I didn't expect to win. I came thinking that I'll give it my all. The result was the last thing (on my mind). So, winning against her, it's a surprise for me too. But I am happy that I was able to win. It was a really good win but tough,' said the teenager.
'It was very difficult as she was giving it her all. I also gave my all. It was a very tiring match. There are many lessons but the main one is that we have to keep fighting till the last shuttle.'
Unnati was fired up right from the start, dominating the first game as Sindhu seemed to struggle with the drift. The youngster very nearly closed out the match in the second game when ahead 19-18 but five-time World Championship medallist showed great resolve to level the contest.
Unnati kept troubling Sindhu with her deft touches at the net to which Sindhu had no response. She also kept going for the lines during attack for which she was rewarded with multiple winners.
Knowing she has nothing to lose, Unnati relentlessly attacked her opponent with body smashes, forcing a frustrated Sindhu to commit several errors. She extended the rallies to exasperate the world No.15 who succumbed to her first loss to an Indian junior.
'It was a bit hard to control the shuttle. In the third game she took a lead and maintained that. She had some lucky points with some net cords on crucial points. It's good for her, she's done well, and I wish her all the best,' said Sindhu, who had won the Super 1000 event in 2016.
World No.35 Unnati will next face Japanese third seed Akane Yamaguchi for a place in the last four in what will be their first meeting. Though she has had reasonable success this year like winning the Singapore International Challenge or reaching the German Open quarters, Unnati credits her semi-final appearance at the Taipei Open in May for her improved performances.
'Reaching the semis in Taipei boosted my confidence. I had some good matches there. That helped me keep my patience in the third game. I was ready to play long rallies which were gruelling, but I managed to stay focused and composed under pressure,' said Unnati.
Earlier, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty booked a men's doubles quarter-final spot after beating eighth seeds Leo Rolly Carnando and Bagas Maulana 21-19, 21-19 for their second successive win over the Indonesians. The world No.12 pairing will next face Malaysians Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi.
However, it was the end of the road for HS Prannoy who went down 21-18, 15-21, 8-21 to sixth seed Chou Tien Chen for his eighth loss to the Chinese Taipei player in 14 meetings.
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