In a display of sheer resilience and tactical brilliance, 20-year-old Indian shuttler Devika Sihag advanced to her first-ever BWF Super 300 final on Saturday. The unseeded world No. 63 pulled off a miraculous comeback against Chinese Taipei’s fifth seed Huang Yu-Hsun, winning 22-20, 21-13 in just 38 minutes at the Nimibutr Stadium.
The opening game appeared to be slipping away from Sihag as Huang built a commanding 20-15 lead, holding five game points. However, the young Indian rose like a phoenix, reeling off seven consecutive points to snatch the set.
The tactical shift: Sihag slowed down the pace, engaging Huang in long rallies and utilizing her height for deep smashes from the baseline.
The error trap: Frustrated by Sihag’s defense, Huang "drowned in a cesspool of unforced errors," hitting wide on consecutive points to surrender the game.
The second set dominance: Carrying a massive psychological edge, Sihag surged to an 11-5 lead at the interval and never looked back, sealing the match with a sharp cross-court smash.
After saving five game points in the opening game, I was thinking of playing positively, and it worked well for me... I was pushing her into rallies, and she was making mistakes
Devika Sihag
By reaching the final, Sihag becomes only the fifth Indian woman to play a Super 300 summit clash, joining the elite company of Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu, Malvika Bansod, and Tanvi Sharma.
Sihag will now face Malaysia’s Goh Jin Wei in the final on Sunday. While Goh is a two-time World Junior Champion, Sihag enters the match with the momentum of a perfect week, having not dropped a single set throughout the tournament.
