Parents elated over Sindhu's quarterfinal victory at Rio Olympics

The parents of shuttler PV Sindhu on Wednesday expressed delight after their daughter kept India's medal hopes alive by reaching the semifinals of the women's singles event at the Rio Olympics, which is being held in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.

Sindhu produced a gritty performance under tremendous pressure, beating Chinese world number two Yihan Wang 22-20, 21-19 in a gruelling quarterfinal contest that lasted nearly an hour at Riocentro-Pavilion 4.

With the win, Sindhu, the two-time bronze medallist at World Championship, will now have two shots at landing a medal for India. She will next compete against Nozomi Okuhara of Japan in the semifinal on Thursday.

If she loses, she will play a bronze medal play off with the loser of other semifinal.

"There are still two more matches to go. She will be playing semi finals against Japan's Nozomi Okuhara, who is also a tough opponent. We are happy with her performance and pray and wish that she continues her form in the semifinal match," said Sindhu's father P V Ramana.

In the opening game, Sindhu showed tremendous resilience against the 28-year-old Wang, who dominated the proceedings from the start. The Indian shuttler, however, held her nerves in tense situation and thwarted the surging opponent to win the game.

Sindhu's father also credited coach Pullela Gopichand for the Hyderabadi shuttler's slow and steady rise.

"We are very happy and proud, two more steps to go. She has our blessings," added Sindhu's mother P. Vijaya.

India, who have sent their largest-ever contingent of 119 athletes in Rio Olympics, are yet to open their medal account in the ongoing Summer Games and pinned their dwindling hopes on the shuttlers Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth, who will play his men's singles quarterfinal later in the day.