It was always going to be the minor tweaks – albeit long-due – that would bring the major performance shifts in PV Sindhu. Like, how she viewed her flank defense, and used the dancing footwork to cover the court. As anticipated, it was an Indonesian who has smoothened her court movement.
Irwansyah, who helped Jonatan Christie maximise a solid but unspectacular game back in Indonesia, is now helping Sindhu regain her career momentum. On Thursday she made the China Masters quarters, her third of the year. And it was a 21-15, 21-15 symmetry against Pornpawee Chochuwong that showcased the subtle changes that have come about this year.
Irwansyah is a typical Indonesian. They tend to read games and chinks in armour in a jiffy, and then go about correcting the jagged edges meticulously. Sindhu’s game had two massive issues in not just her down-years since 2021, but even when she was on her medals-spree. The footwork/striding could get leaden in defense and gift opponents winners that they otherwise wouldn’t accumulate. And she got into too many 17-17 situations.
Indonesian legend Rudi Hartono, speaking once at the Hatsun Badminton Centre, had pointed out that her footwork needed a bit of fluidity, and that she had no business getting into the 17-17 situations, his exact words, “Why does a good player like her allow her opponents to reach 17?” Irwansyah has slowly chipped away at both issues, though she can lapse into chaos when some of the Top 5 fetch up. Her problem – where strategy needed to be summoned and power wasn’t enough – was always against deceptive players. Chochuwong has those excellent drops that fall like snow crystals at the net. But she can also achieve a quarter of Intanon Ratchanok’s disguises – those that vroom at the flanks, those that give the Thai a 5-6 career H2H against Sindhu. She could always wrong foot Sindhu or leave her snatching thin air. Not on Friday at Shenzen.
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Sindhu hadn’t beaten the Thai for three years since June of ’22, and there have been some painful All England and China Open losses. But heading into the last quarter of the ’25 season, Sindhu looked very assured against Chochuwong who herself has improved upon her game.
It was the stance and the diagonal movements to front court, the lunge – and recovery for the next return, that Irwansyah has helped untangle. Chochuwong kept dropping them cross and finding little tweaks on the down the line alleys, but Sindhu moving from the Central T, showed decisive footwork to defend. The length of the strides, the speed on them, have both gotten smoother to accentuate her northward attacking reach. And it meant the Thai couldn’t get anywhere neat Sindhu’s scire in the opener.
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A particularly heartening retrieve was for 18-13 in the decider, when Sindhu dived to the left to swat back a low hovering shot along the lines and then crucially recovered, bouncing off her palms (or fingertips) like a jungle cat changing direction. Chochuwong had kept pace till 13-13 and was threatening a late surge, but Sindhu’s easy defense brought on errors as the Thai was forced to go for the lines and sailed out haplessly repeatedly.
Another key feature, was Hartono’s lament: Why does she allow anyone to go toe to toe to 17, from where opponents can pile the pressure on her. Irwansyah has done well to stem that tide somewhat at least against players not named An Se-young. So while Sindhu was sailing in the opener and pocketed it quickly, she neatly broke away from 13-13 and took off with a run of 5 straight points to not let the Thai labour hopes of flipping the pressure on the Indian, ranked No 14.
This was achieved with a slightly faster clip on defensive strokes, returning the shuttle a split second earlier, and a solid attack, not extravagant or anything, to suck errors out of Chochuwong. It’s like start of a full press in your own basketball court, this defense. And it worked calmly to give her a semifinal.
All of these things can get upturned on Friday. Because she likely will face An Se-young, who is 7-0 up on her. The Korean who missed on the world title needs to beat Mia Blichfeldt. But Sindhu did well to wrap up her own progress in straight sets, and get ready for a potential firecracker, if only to see how Irwansyah plans for the Friday blockbuster.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
