PV Sindhu is in the women's singles final of the Japan Open 2026 after Tokyo Olympic champion Chen Yufei, a Beijing Olympic champion, withdrew from the semifinal in Tokyo after her hamstring injury on Saturday morning in Tokyo which ended her run in the women's singles final. Sindhu will be the first time in two years she won a BWF World Tour final in more than two years and is set to go for the title since she won a gold at the Olympics.
Sindhu was playing well in the first game of the match which ended in a final match and Sindhu looked in a dominant style before the match came to a premature end. The 31-year-old Indian had already won a hard-fought opening game 21-19 and 15-10 on the way to a 15-10 lead in the second game when Chen suffered the injury. Chen’s medical timeout and after taking a medical timeout in the second game, the Chinese shuttler could not continue and Sindhu will be called up to Sunday's title clash.
Sindhu's final will be her first since winning the Syed Modi International in Lucknow in 2024. She had also been runner-up at the Malaysia Open Super 500 that year and her last major BWF World Tour title was at the Singapore Open Super 500 in 2022.
After the match Sindhu expressed happiness at being another final after a long wait.
"I'm very happy that I've got to the final. For me every match mattered a lot from the first match, especially today's match. It was important from the beginning to stay focused because when you play with the top-ranked players, every point matters."
Sindhu will now face the winner of the second semifinal between Japan's Akane Yamaguchi and Indonesia's Putri Kusuma Wardani.
The Indian was 6-8 against Chen in their head-to-head record. The Chinese world No. 4 had won each of their previous four matches in straight games, including a straight-games victory over Sindhu at this year's Indonesia Masters. Sindhu's last victory against Chen was at the semifinal of the 2019 BWF World Championships where she became the first Indian badminton world champion.
Sindhu went on to produce one of her best performances of the season and worked hard to reverse the trend. She attacked with accuracy and movement across the court as well as good net control to control the rallies from the beginning.
She got a good lead in the opening game with some delicate drop shots and powerful smashes and took the lead to 11-7 at the mid-game interval. Chen responded well, tightening her defence and slowly closing the deficit before she was level at 18-18.
The match’s most significant moment was during a 51-shot rally, and both players were not willing to give up an inch. Sindhu did manage an error from Chen and two fierce smashes to take the first game 21-19.
The Indian carried that momentum into the second game and early on took a 3-0 lead. Chen had to fight back to stay within touching distance but Sindhu stayed focused and controlled the pace of the game with her attacking strokes and accurate positioning.
Sindhu was leading 15-10 when Chen called for a medical timeout after feeling discomfort in her hamstring. Despite treatment, the Chinese star could not continue and retired from the match, sending Sindhu through to the final.
Sindhu later said the coach guided her in the tense moments of the match.
"My coach kept telling me to get to the next point. When I was leading, you know I was way too focused on it, and you can only take one point and it takes so long to change your mind." That advice really helped me stay calm and focused.
Sindhu also cited the importance of winning the marathon rally late in the first game and said it gave her a lot more confidence at that stage of the match.
Sindhu is now one victory away from her first BWF World Tour title since 2022 and with confidence and her performance in the tournament has only got better. A victory in Sunday's final would not only end a long wait for silverware but would also be a big boost into the rest of the international badminton season.
Sindhu’s return to a big final is a reminder of her ability to contend with the best in the world and will, for Indian badminton fans, bring a new level of confidence to the game. After several injury issues and inconsistent performance in the last few years, the former world champion is now back in the race for one of the biggest titles on the BWF calendar. Tokyo is now the place to watch as Sindhu seeks to complete her remarkable journey with the Japan Open 2026 crown.
