New Delhi: Saina Nehwal lit up the Siri Fort courts with a sparkling performance, upsetting reigning world champion Ratchanok Intanon in straight games as India overcame 3-2 Thailand in their Uber Cup last league tie here on Tuesday.
Saina, who had a 4-3 record against the Thai before this tie, took 42 minutes to outsmart Ratchanok 22-20, 21-14, before 11th ranked P.V. Sindhu extended the lead for the hosts with a 21-19, 21-14 win over Porntip Buranaprasertsuk.
Later, Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa sealed the tie overcoming Duanganong Aroonkesorn and Savitree Amitrapai 21-16, 21-13 in 33 minutes. With the win, the hosts also topped Group Y and will avoid meeting the giants like China, Japan among others.
For Saina the win was even more special, as she had faltered infront of her home crowd since her 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medal effort here.
“I still can’t believe that I beat her in straight games and that too here were I have never played well. I got emotional so after winning. She is a world number four player and winning against her means I have trained really well and I hope to continue that in future,” said an emotional Saina, who paired up with Sindhu for the second doubles but for a losing cause.
Playing on adjacent courts, China men humbled Chinese Taipei 5-0 to top Group D. Chen Long pulled one match for the defending champions, while iconic Lin Dan rallied from game down to complete the rout.
“It’s still the group stage. So we want to do well here. There would be tougher matches ahead. We are looking ahead to the next stage,” said Chen after his win.
Indonesia, Japan sail into quarters. Earlier, former champions Indonesia cruised into the quarter-finals with thumping victories over their respective opponents. The men’s side routed Nigeria 5-0, with world no. 5 Tommy Sugiarto starting the proceedings, while reigning world champions Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan completed the rout.
The women’s team trounced Singapore 4-1. Liang Xiaoyu pulled out the consolation win for the Singaporeans, who failed to make the cut in both categories. The men lost to Thailand 4-1 in Group A.
Meanwhile, Japan’s women came back from a point down to beat Malaysia 4-1. Jing Yi Tee put Malaysia ahead with an upset 22-20, 21-19 win over Sayaka Takahashi, but Eriko Hirose and young Akane Yamaguchi set the record straight for the former champions.
