PV Sindhu displayed a masterclass in technical finesse and grit on Sunday as she downed China’s Sun Yu 21-11, 17-21, 21-11 to clinch the China Open title for the first time. Sindhu cruised to a win in the first game and was outplayed in the final stages in the second. Sun Yu ran out of steam in the third game, allowing the Indian to race away with a comprehensive win and take the title. This was only the second time that an Indian woman has won the China Open after Saina Nehwal in 2014.

It was the Olympic silver medallist who raced to a 11-5 lead in the first game. There were brief signs of a resurgence from Sun Yu, but the Indian’s cross-court movement and speed was top notch. Sindhu closed down the game 21-11.

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Sun Yu made a strong comeback in the second game. Sindhu had a slender lead at 6-4, but the Chinese got the score to seven-all, getting the measure of her opponent in the rallies. Advantage swung back and forth from there but Sun Yu slowly gained a foothold in the contest.

At 14-11, it looked like Sindhu had the game well within her grasp but Sun Yu’s net play significantly improved and managed to take a lead in the match for the first time. In the final exchanges of the second game, Sindhu was outplayed by Sun Yu, who dropped just one point from 16-all to take it 21-17.

It was a see-saw battle in the third game too as fatigue started to take a toll on both players, who played quite a few misplaced attempts through their baseline shots. Sindhu took the lead, though. Sun Yu missed a simple return with the game delicately poised at 13-10 in Sindhu’s favour and the Indian never looked back from there, spanking some terrific returns, out of the way of the crowd favourite’s reach.

Corrections and clarifications: The headline of this article earlier erroneously stated that Sindhu was the second Indian shuttler to win the China Open. She is the third, after Kidambi Srikanth and Saina Nehwal.