Published: October 31, 2026 at 10:15 am
A rejuvenated PV Sindhu rolled into the semifinals of the Hylo Open 2026 badminton tournament in Germany on Friday. The two-time Olympic Games medallist will take on fellow Indian Anmol Kharb in semifinal.
In further good news for Indian badminton, Lakshya Sen also advanced to the men’s singles semifinals of the BWF Super 500 tournament after rallying from a game down to beat Finland’s Kalle Koljonen at the Saarlandhalle.
PV Sindhu made light work of Amalie Schulz in the women’s singles quarterfinals, winning 21-12, 21-10 in just 28 minutes. Pics: BAI
Second seed Sindhu made light work of Amalie Schulz in the women’s singles quarterfinals, winning 21-12, 21-10 in just 28 minutes. Sindhu never allowed the Danish shuttler to take the lead in either game and remained firmly in control throughout to seal a comfortable victory.
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It was Sindhu’s second victory over Schulz in as many meetings. The two had previously faced each other in the Thailand Open round of 16 earlier this year, where Sindhu also won in straight games.
Anmol downs fighting Unnati
Anmol, meanwhile, prevailed 21-17, 18-21, 21-16 over sixth seed Unnati Hooda in a 68-minute battle between two of India’s rising players. Both the 19-year-old Indian players were meeting for the first time on the BWF World Tour.
The opening game was evenly contested early on, with Anmol and Unnati locked at 6-all before the former eventually pulled away to take it 21-17. Unnati responded strongly in the second game and opened up a 15-11 advantage. Anmol fought back to level the scores at 18-all, but Unnati reeled off the next three points to force a decider.
Unnati Hooda lost to Anmol Kharb in a tough three-game contest in the quarterfinals
Unnati made the stronger start in the third game and led 6-3. Having reduced the deficit to a point at 12-11, Anmol produced the decisive burst, winning eight consecutive points to surge 19-12 ahead. Unnati mounted a late comeback, but the deficit proved too large as Anmol closed out the contest 21-16.
Saturday’s semifinal will be the second senior meeting between Sindhu and Anmol. Sindhu won their previous encounter 21-17, 21-15 in the opening round of the Syed Modi International 2024.
Thailand’s Pornpawee Chochuwong and Denmark’s Line Højmark Kjærsfeldt will contest the other women’s singles semifinal.
Lakshya rallies past Koljonen
In men’s singles, seventh seed Lakshya rallied from a game down to beat Koljonen 14-21, 21-17, 21-13 in one hour and six minutes. The opening game was finely poised at 6-all before Koljonen took control of the latter stages to move ahead in the contest.
Lakshya responded in the second game. The Indian held a narrow advantage from the outset and, despite Koljonen staying within touching distance, never allowed the Finn to draw level.
The Hylo Open marks Lakshya’s first individual BWF World Tour semifinal since finishing runner-up at the All England Open in March
The deciding game was also closely fought initially, with the two players locked at 4-all. Lakshya then reeled off four consecutive points to seize the momentum and maintained his advantage to close out the contest.
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The Hylo Open marks Lakshya’s first individual BWF World Tour semifinal since finishing runner-up at the All England Open in March. The Indian will next face sixth seed Toma Junior Popov of France in the semifinals.
Popov has won both of his previous senior meetings against Lakshya. The Frenchman edged the Indian 22-20, 19-21, 21-19 at the 2018 Thomas Cup before winning 21-11, 21-10 at the China Masters 2025.
