Rio rerun: Sindhu sets up summit clash with Marin in India Open

World No. 5 PV Sindhu kept India's hopes alive in the Yonex Sunrise India Open World Super Series as she beat World No. 4 Sung Ji Hyun of Korea to sail into finals here on Saturday at the Siri Fort Sports Complex.

Out of the 10 occasions where both these superstars have clashed, Sindhu has now won seven times.

Both the players displayed amazing tenacity but eventually Sindhu prevailed 21-18, 14-21, 21-14 in 76 minutes.

Both the players started on an aggressive note with the Korean taking an early 6-5 lead. But Sindhu fought her way back and took five straight points to make it 10-6. Sung Ji took three points to stay hot on the Hyderabadi's trail, but Sindhu went into the mid-game break leading 11-9.

After the interval, the players stayed close and it looked like it could go anybody's way but Sindhu, maintaining her composure, managed to run away with the opening game.

After the change of ends, Sindhu started from where she left in the first game and opened up a 5-2 lead but an error from Sindhu saw the momentum shift in Sung Ji's favour and from 3-6 down, the Korean showed great character to pocket the game.

Sindhu showed steely nerves in the final set to seal the match and stay on road for her maiden India Open title. As soon as Sindhu won the last point and won the game, the near capacity crowd went into a rapturous mood.

"It is always difficult to play Sung Ji as she is a kind of player against whom you have to construct points as she would not give away easy points. In the past also, I have played against her and it was never easy to play her. But I had faith in myself and knew that I could go the distance," an ecstatic Sindhu said after the match.

She has now set up a mega clash with top seeded Carolina Marin of Spain, what is a rematch of the Rio Olympics final. Marin had earlier staved off a staunch challenge from the fourth seed Akane Yamaguchi of Japan to win 21-16, 21-14 in 40 minutes.

In the men's finals, top seeded Viktor Axelsen will meet Chou Chen Tien Chou of Chinese Taipei. Top seeded Axelsen got the better off NG Ka Long Angus of Hong Kong 21-12, 21-13, while Chou Chen beat the Danish youngster Anders Antonsen 21-17, 21-14.

In the women's doubles, it will be a clash between the Japanese as seventh seed Shiho Tanaka and Koharu Yonemoto will go against third seed Naoko Fukuman and Kurumi Yonao.

The Japanese pair of Tanaka-Yonemoto, earlier, display a gritty game to down top seed Jung Kyung Eun and Shin Seung Chan of Korea 21-16 19-21, 24-22 while the third seeded finalists had defeated compatriots Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota 21-16, 21-13.

On the other hand, the men's doubles final will also see an all-Indonesian battle when fourth seed Marcus Fernaldi Gideon and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo will take on sixth seed Ricky Karandasuwardi and Angga Pratama on Sunday.

The fourth seeded Indonesian pair had earlier waived off a tough challenge from Mads Conrad-Petersen and Mads Pieler Kolding of Denmark 21-14 18-21, 21-9.

The other finalists had found a way through the fifth seeded Chinese pair of Li Junhui and Liu Yuchen 21-16, 13-21, 21-16.