PV Sindhu Creates History with First Japan Open Super 750 Title, Defeats Akane Yamaguchi in Straight Games

However, on Sunday, India’s PV Sindhu claimed the Japanese Open crown after defeating Akane Yamaguchi of Japan. It marks Sindhu’s first triumph at the Japan Open Super 750 event. The player won in straight games, 21-17 and 21-17, in the finals. The 50-minute-long match was one of a lifetime for Sindhu.

It was her first victory at a major tournament since her 2022 success at the Singapore Open Super 500 event. At the beginning of the season, she got into the semi-finals of the Malaysia Open but fell to Chinese player Wang Zhiyi who ranks world no. 2.

PV Sindhu Is The Champion Of The Japan Open 2026 ❤️?

This Is Sindhu's 1st S750 Title And Her 1st World Tour Title Since The 2024 Syed Modi International .

Sindhu Will Enter The Top 8 In The World Rankings Next Week .#JapanOpen2026 https://t.co/3ujCCQggQP pic.twitter.com/7evCCTdnJx

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— Badminton Media (@BadmintonMedia1) July 19, 2026

Sindhu seemed to be in fine shape right from the first game of the championship. The player defeated Chen Yufei of China in the semi-final and got a bye against Nozomi Okuhara in the quarter-finals. Her second match saw her defeat China’s Han Yue by winning the first game and fighting well in the second.

In the quarter-final match, she succeeded in winning the first game against Nozomi Okuhara. However, in the second game-while Sindhu was leading 15-10-the Japanese player was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to a hamstring injury, thereby securing Sindhu's spot in the semi-finals. This victory will significantly boost PV Sindhu's morale ahead of the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

The Queen reclaims her crown. ??

PV Sindhu outclassed Akane Yamaguchi 21-17, 21-17 in straight games to lift the Japan Open 2026 women's singles title, becoming the first Indian to win the tournament. pic.twitter.com/zRnQH31H4i — Olympic Khel (@OlympicKhel) July 19, 2026

This marks the first time in four years that PV Sindhu has won a BWF title outside India. Moreover, she has won a BWF Super 750 title for the first time in her career. Sindhu secured the BWF title after a two-year gap by defeating World Champion Akane Yamaguchi. With this victory, she has further improved her head-to-head record against Yamaguchi; the two have faced each other 30 times so far, with Sindhu winning 16 of those encounters.