Sindhu outclasses Saena, Saina ousted in Round 1

Changzhou, September 18

PV Sindhu progressed to the pre-quarterfinals but Saina Nehwal bowed out after a narrow loss at the China Open.

The third-seeded Sindhu, who had clinched the China Open title in 2016, defeated world No. 39 Saena Kawakami of Japan 21-15 21-13 in the opening round at the Olympic Sports Center Xincheng Gymnasium.

However, Saina, who was the first Indian to win the China Open title in 2014, lost 22-20 8-21 14-21 to South Korea’s Sung Ji Hyun in a 48-minute opener. The men’s doubles pair of Manu Attri and B Sumeeth Reddy defeated Chinese Taipei’s Liao Min Chun and Su Ching Heng 13-21 21-13 21-12 in 39 minutes to enter the second round.

Sindhu and Saena started out evenly before the Indian broke off to grab a 13-7 lead. She kept dominating the rallies and pocketed the opening game without much trouble. In the second game, Sindhu zoomed to a 6-0 lead but Saena managed to make it 8-10 before the Indian entered the interval with a slender 11-9 lead. After the break, Sindhu jumped to a 15-11 lead before grabbing eight match points at 20-12 and sealed it comfortably. — PTI