Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal produced a sensational show in the first round of India Open Super 750 badminton tournament. The London Olympics bronze medallist fought hard against world No. 24 Mia Blichfeldt of Denmark to win the first round 21-17, 12-21, 21-19 in New Delhi.
Nehwal started the match on a high note and took 11-6 lead in the opening game but the Danish shuttler bounced back in the second half but failed to clinch it as it went in the Indian’s favour 21-17. While Blichfeldt produced a dominant show in the second game to claim it 12-21. She was in total control and the momentum completely shifted in her favour but Nehwal didn’t back down from the challenge.
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The 32-year-old switched the gears and played some counter-attacking badminton to stun her opponent and came up with a deceptive net shot to close the match.
“I have been working on my movement and I was confident that I could win the match today. I could see that my movement was good today and I was determined to fight for every point," said Saina after the match.
She will now face China’s Chen Yufei in the next round. The Tokyo Olympic gold medallist defeated Michelle Li of Canada 21-19, 21-15.
Meanwhile, another Indian star shuttler PV Sindhu suffered a shocking defeat in the first round of the India Open Super 750 against Thailand’s Supanida Katethong. Sindhu, who entered the tournament as one of the favourites, went down 12-21 20-22 to the world No. 30 in the women’s singles match.
Supanida was very dominant in the opening game as she didn’t allow the world No. 7 Sindhu to settle. She was very precise in her returns and was in total control during the rallies to clinch the first game 21-12.
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It was overall a mixed day for India as Lakshya Sen, Satwisairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty, Treesa Jolly/Gayatri Gopichand Pullela and Krishna Prasad Garaga/Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala too advanced to the next stage.
However, besides Sindhu, H.S Prannoy, India’s highest-ranked men’s player, women’s doubles pair Shruti Mishra/Sikki Reddy; the mixed doubles pair of Ishaan Bhatnagar/Tanisha Crasto and the women’s doubles combine of Haritha Manazhiyil and Ashna Roy crashed out on the opening day.
(With Agency Inputs)
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