Saina enters third round of World Badminton Championship

NEW DELHI: India’s ace shuttler Saina Nehwal advanced to the third round of the World Badminton Championships after beating Hsiao Huan Chen of Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) 20-22, 21-15, 21-8 at the Pierre de Coubertin stadium in Paris on Wednesday.

World No.2 and second seeded Saina, who got a bye in the first round, has defeated Hsiao Huan Chen twice in their previous meetings.

Saina, 20, was high on confidence given the kind of form she has been this season and the mere fact that she is seeded second behind Wang Yihan of China speaks volumes for her consistency.

Saina, the only Indian to win three Super Series events, has been scaling peaks since her 2008 Beijing Olympics quarterfinal appearance.

Saina’s best performance in a World Championship from three previous appearances was her quarterfinal appearance where she lost to second-seeded Lin Wang of China in front of the home crowd in Hyderabad last year.

The Indian this season has reached the semifinal of the All England and the quarterfinal of the Malaysian Open, before winning three back-to-back tournaments, including two Super Series events – Indian Open Grand Prix, Singapore Open and Indonesian Open.(TNN)