Kuala Lumpur, January 9, 2026 – PV Sindhu reached the semifinals of the Malaysia Open Super 1000 tournament after Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi retired from their quarterfinal match due to injury. The Indian shuttler won the opening game 21-11 before Yamaguchi, wearing a knee brace, withdrew from the contest at Axiata Arena.
The match lasted just over 10 minutes as Yamaguchi struggled with limited movement throughout the game. The three-time world champion and third seed tried to push Sindhu to the backcourt with her defensive style, but made repeated errors due to the injury. Sindhu quickly built a 10-2 lead and never let her opponent recover.
SUGGESTED READ: Malaysia Open 2026: Lakshya Sen R16, Ayush Shetty Upsets Lee
This win improves Sindhu’s head-to-head record against Yamaguchi to 15-12. The world number 18 defeated the world number 3 to reach her first Malaysia Open semifinal in eight years. It marks a strong comeback for the two-time Olympic medalist who is playing her first tournament after a prolonged injury layoff.
Sindhu was in charge of sharp down-the-line winners and strong smashes. Her court coverage looked better than in recent months, and she moved well to retrieve difficult shots.
Sindhu’s Path to Semifinals
Sindhu started her Malaysia Open campaign with a 21-13, 22-20 win over Sung Shuo-yun of Chinese Taipei in the first round. She then swept aside eighth seed Tomoka Miyazaki of Japan 21-8, 21-13 in just 33 minutes to enter the quarterfinals.
The winner will face either Wang Zhiyi of China or Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in the semifinals. Wang is the second seed and world number 2, while Wardani is seeded sixth. Wardani has beaten Sindhu in their last two meetings, including at the Paris World Championships.
SUGGESTED READ: PV Sindhu: Age, Family, Religion & Personal Background
Indian Doubles Pair Advances
India’s men’s doubles team of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty also moved into the quarterfinals. The third seeds beat Malaysia’s Junaidi Arif and Roy King Yap 21-18, 21-11 in 39 minutes. They will next play Indonesia’s Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri in the quarterfinals.
For more sports news and updates, follow JeetwinSports.
