Indonesia Open | Carolina Marin proves too much for Saina
Saina Nehwal went down to top seed Carolina Marin 22-24, 11-21 in the last eight of the Indonesia Open in Jakarta. The World No.8 couldn’t match up to the World No.1’s aggression and bowed out in straight games. This was the Indian’s third loss to the Spaniard in seven meetings.
2012 Olympic bronze medalist Saina Nehwal could not repeat her success in the Dubai Superseries against Carolina Marin at the Istora Senaya in Jakarta on Friday. In a matched billed as the one to watch out for today, Saina fought hard in the first game, but fizzled out in the second.
The first game between the winner and runner-up of the World Championships was a treat to watch. Carolina took a huge lead to be coasting at 13-7 and looked set to win easily. But Saina showed steely determination to fight back. She reeled off 6 points from 10-15 to have a slender one point lead. It was a see-saw battle from there on, before Marin held her nerve to win 24-22.
The Spaniard was determined to justify her top seeding in the second game, and she grabbed every opportunity with both hands to take a huge lead at 13-6. The gap was too large to bridge, and Saina lost the game 11-21. This loss means it has been one year and six months since Saina last won a title.
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