Tanvi Sharma powers into Taipei Open final
India's 17-year-old Tanvi Sharma swept into the women's singles final of the Taipei Open Super 300 with a 21-17, 21-11 victory over fifth-seeded and home favourite Huang Yu-Hsun at Taipei Arena. World No 34 Sharma, the Junior World Championships silver medallist from Punjab, closed out the semifinal in 33 minutes, denying the home crowd the upset it wanted. Tanvi will face Vietnam's sixth-seeded Nguyen Thuy Linh in Sunday's title clash.
Unnati Hooda exits as Nguyen reaches final
In the other semifinal, India's Unnati Hooda fell to Nguyen Thuy Linh 21-15, 21-18 in 41 minutes. World No 28 Unnati could not recover from a 13-6 deficit in the opening set as the 28-year-old Nguyen, ten years her senior, played steadily and retrieved cleanly. After taking a 16-11 lead in the second set, Unnati won only two of the next 12 points. The result ended the prospect of an all-Indian final and gave the Vietnamese shuttler a chance at the title.
India's men's singles ends in quarterfinals
Kiran George's 21-12, 21-10 defeat to fourth-seeded Japan's Yudai Okimoto in 33 minutes ended India's men's singles challenge at the tournament. Kiran had been India's last surviving men's singles player following HS Prannoy's round-of-16 exit and was unable to mount a challenge against the Japanese shuttler. India's doubles entries had also been eliminated earlier in the week.
Quarterfinals set up the semifinal stage
On the previous day of competition, Unnati Hooda had reached the semifinals with a 23-21, 21-16 victory over compatriot Devika Sihag, while Tanvi Sharma outlasted Thailand's Supanida Katethong 21-15, 18-21, 21-14 in a 54-minute quarterfinal. The two Indian wins briefly raised the possibility of an all-Indian semifinal before the draw delivered opposite brackets.
Tanvi's rise through the BWF World Tour
A member of India's 2024 Badminton Asia Team Championships gold medal squad, Tanvi was runner-up at last year's U.S. Open Super 300. In 2025, she reached finals at the Odisha Masters Super 100 and Guwahati Masters Super 100, and won the Denmark Challenge. She captured the Bonn International title in 2024. The Taipei Open final is her fourth BWF World Tour final and second at Super 300 level.
Final matchup awaits on Sunday
Tanvi will meet Nguyen Thuy Linh in Sunday's title match at Taipei Arena. The matchup gives the teenager a chance to claim a second Super 300 title against a higher-ranked, more experienced opponent who has already handled one Indian this week. The result will also clarify how Tanvi's surge translates against a top-six seed on the BWF World Tour.
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