Ashmita Chaliha beats world No. 2 Yamaguchi at French Open

The most striking figure from the match is 21-19, 21-18, the scoreline by which Ashmita Chaliha defeated world No. 2 Akane Yamaguchi in the French Open round of 16 at Tremblay-en-France on Thursday. The straight-game victory lasted 37 minutes.

Revenge and recovery

The result also served as revenge for Chaliha, who had lost 18-21, 10-21 to Yamaguchi in the round of 16 at the Denmark Open earlier in the month. With this win, the head-to-head record between the two players stands at 1-1. Chaliha, a southpaw from Assam, used a clear plan of pushing Yamaguchi into the far backhand corner to open up the court, combining clever drops with powerful smashes.

The victory marks another step in Chaliha's comeback after a three-month layoff caused by a meniscus tear in her right knee. She returned to action in May and reached the semifinals of the Macau Open before claiming her maiden World Tour title at the Korea Masters Super 300, where she came from behind to beat China's Han Qian Xi in the final.

Chaliha becomes the first Indian shuttler after PV Sindhu to beat the world No. 2. Sindhu had previously beaten Yamaguchi at the Thailand Open in 2022. Chaliha will next face the winner of the match between Pornpawee Chochuwong and Nozomi Okuhara in the quarterfinal.

Related on Apex Sports News

• An Se-young retains Denmark Open title; Lanier beats home favourite Antonsen

Sources

• Hindustan Times

• Sportstar

• Photo: Jurnal Bulutangkis, CC BY 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)