PV Sindhu, Lakshya Sen storm into Hylo Open final as India gears up for Super Sunday

India is set for a Super Sunday at the Hylo Open 2026 after PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen stormed into the women’s and men’s singles finals of the USD 500,000 BWF Super 500 with impressive straight-sets victories in Saarbrucken, Germany on Saturday.

Two-time Olympic medalist Sindhu continued her impressive run to overcome compatriot Anmol Kharb 21-13, 21-16 in the all-India semi-finals. The win marked Sindhu’s second consecutive finals appearance, having finished runner-up at the French Open last week.

Meanwhile, Lakshya produced one of his most convincing performances in recent months as he outclassed France’s Tom Junior Popov 21-17, 21-13 to book a place in the men’s singles final.

Also read: Racket Science: Inside An Se Young’s extraordinary badminton dominance

With both Indians now one win away from winning the title, the country has a chance to celebrate a memorable double triumph in Germany. Sindhu will face Denmark’s eighth seed Line Hojmark Kjaersfeldt in the women’s singles final, while Lakshya will face either Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie or Denmark’s top seed Anders Antonsen.

TOO MUCH SINDH EXPERIENCE ON ANMOL

Sindhu once again showed why she remains one of India’s most reliable performers on the international circuit. The 31-year-old combined her attacking prowess with accurate net play and an impressive hitting range to keep the 19-year-old Anmol out of rhythm.

Anmolová, appearing in only her second Super 500 semifinal, got off to a promising start, briefly going 4-2 in the opening game. However, Sindhu quickly found her rhythm and used her attacking strokes to take control of the exchanges. Despite several errors in judging Anmol’s deep returns, the former world champion surged forward to take an 11-9 lead at the break.

Sindhu came through after the break, stretching her advantage to 15-10 before comfortably closing out the opening game 21-13.

The second game offered a tougher challenge. Anmol started aggressively again and took an early 4-2 lead before both players traded points. Fine dribbling at the net helped the youngster go ahead and she even managed to take a 9-8 lead after Sindhu found the net.

Anmol continued to fight back and after the score was tied at 13-13, produced two impressive smashes to move ahead 15-13. However, Sindhu responded immediately and capitalized on her younger opponent’s mistakes to restore parity at 15-15. The experienced Indian then took control and raced to a 17-15 lead before closing out the match 21-16.

LAKSHYA RE-DISCOVERS HIS WINNING TOUCH

Meanwhile, Lakshya put in a commanding performance against world No.13 Popov to reach his second final of the season following his runner-up finish at the All England Open in March.

The Indian endured a tough campaign in Saarbrucken, needing three wins in three matches against Joakim Oldorff, Kiran George and Kalle Koljonen to reach the semi-finals. Against Popov, however, he looked much more confident and in control with his defensive resilience and attacking punches.

The opening match was initially even, with both players exchanging points. Lakshya gradually took control and moved 10-6 ahead after capitalizing on a series of unforced errors from the Frenchman. His defense and ability to reverse rallies frustrated Popov, although the Frenchman fought back briefly to cut the deficit to 15-17.

Lakshya held his nerve in the closing exchanges and won four game points before sealing the opening 21-17 with a clean sweep.

The Indian carried this momentum into the second match as he took a 4-1 lead. Popov fought back briefly to level the scores at 4-4, but Lakshya responded with a series of powerful smashes to regain control. He went into the break with a four-point lead and showed no signs of slowing down.

Lakshya then extended his lead to 14-7 and kept Popov under constant pressure with his attacking play and solid court coverage. The Indian eventually won nine match points and after missing two, sealed a convincing 21-13 victory with a pinpoint smash.

The win was particularly significant for Lakshya as he looks to turn his season around after the disappointment of missing out on the All England title. The former Hylo Open champion, who lifted the trophy in 2019, now has another opportunity to add to his silverware.

– The end