Defending champion Saina Nehwal moved one step closer to retaining her women’s singles title at the $700,000 China Open Super Series Premier.
Defending champion Saina Nehwal moved one step closer to retaining her women’s singles title at the $700,000 China Open Super Series Premier.
The Olympic bronze medallist on Saturday sealed a final berth with a 21-13, 21-18 win over China’s Wang Yihan, a 2011 world champion and 2012 London Olympics silver medallist, in the semi-finals.
Up against one of her toughest rivals, who has beaten her nine times, Saina showed her prowess, fighting back from 2-4 down in the opening game and prevailed in a gruelling battle in the second to outclass Wang.
The top seeded Indian will next take on Olympic champion Li Xuerui of China, an opponent to whom she has lost nine times, and wins only at the 2012 Indonesia Open and Singapore Open Super Series in 2010.
In the first game, Saina took time to get off the mark and Wang led 5-3 before Saina reeled off six straight points to lead 9-5 and a 11-7 advantage at the break.
Wang caught up at 11-11 but Saina changed gears, and a seven-point burst from 14-13 helped her pocket the opening game.
The second game turned out to be a thriller as lead exchanged hands frequently. Saina led 9-6 at one stage and even though Wang clawed back at 10-10, the Indian wrested a slender 13-11 edge soon.
What ensued was a fight for each point as they moved neck and neck before Saina sealed the issue.
Lee ousts rival Lin in semi-finals Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei battled to a tight victory over long-time rival Lin Dan in a tight three-set semi-final showdown.
The 33-year-old Malay-sian demonstrated gritty resolve in his triumphant win over the Chinese badminton legend and five-time world champ, winning 17-21, 21-19, 21-19 in front of a packed house at the Haixia Olympic Sports Centre in Fuzhou.
The Malaysian is now just a game away from securing his second Super Series title this season, after serving out an eight-month doping ban earlier this year.
