By Syndicated Content
By Richa Naidu
TOKYO (Reuters) â With decisive smashes, cutting backhands and a confident gait, Rio 2016 silver medallist Indiaâs PV Sindhu on Sunday made quick work of Israelâs Ksenia Polikarpova, beating her 21-7, 21-10.
Both matches totalled just 29 minutes, with Polikarpova visibly frustrated and hanging her head with each lost point.
âIt was quite an easy match,â Sindu said at Musashino Forest Sport Plaza, adding that she knows she has the hopes of a billion people behind her.
Though Sindhu, who was beaten to the gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics by Spainâs Carolina Marin, is No. 7 in world rankings, she is considered a serious threat to table toppers Taiwanâs Tai Tzu-Ying and Chen Yu Fei of China.
Richa Naidu
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Tokyo 2020 Olympics - Badminton - Women s Singles - Group Stage - MFS - Musashino Forest Sport Plaza, Tokyo, Japan - July 24, 2021. Tai Tzu Ying of Taiwan in action during the match against Sabrina Jaquet of Switzerland. Pool via REUTERS/Lintao Zhang
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TOKYO, July 24 (Reuters) - Taiwan s Tai Tzu-Ying said she will have to cut out mistakes if she is to make an impact at the Tokyo Olympics and will only begin to think about the threat posed by China s Chen Yu Fei if they both advance to the final.
World No. 1 Tai, who came away empty-handed from the London and Rio Games, looked good in winning her opening set against Sabrina Jaquet 21-7 in their group match.
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Tokyo 2020 Olympics - Badminton - Women s Singles - Group Stage - MFS - Musashino Forest Sport Plaza, Tokyo, Japan â July 25, 2021. P.V. Sindhu of India in action during the match against Ksenia Polikarpova of Israel. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
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TOKYO, July 25 (Reuters) - In his long overdue Olympic debut, men s singles number one Kento Momota of Japan easily beat the United States Timothy Lam 21-12 21-9 on Sunday, even making the occasional trick shot behind his back during their warm-up.
Though Lam had his moments - once bringing his favourite player Momota to his knees - he was no match for Japan s darling on his home turf.
Published on: Saturday, July 24, 2021
By: AFP
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TOKYO: Banned from the Rio Games for gambling and almost forced to retire last year after a car crash Japanese badminton star Kento Momota
(pic) is finally ready for his Olympic debut.
The world number one is among the host country’s brightest medal hopes at the Tokyo Games, but he will just be glad to compete after fracturing his eye socket in a January 2020 accident.
Momota said his “spirit was almost broken” as he tried to recover from the crash hours after he won the Malaysia Masters which killed the driver of the vehicle taking him to Kuala Lumpur airport.
Olympics: Momota out to add highlight chapter to eventful badminton career
Japanese badminton star Kento Momota has had a rollercoaster journey to the Tokyo Games, but the 26-year-old is determined to pay back those who have supported his Olympic quest after a gambling scandal cost him a place in Rio de Janeiro four years ago.
Momota was a clear medal hopeful ahead of the Rio Games, only to miss out when he was banned from the court indefinitely in April that year by the Japan Badminton Association for gambling at illegal casinos.
File photo shows Kento Momota in the men s singles final of the national badminton championships in Tokyo in December 2020. (Kyodo)