- Saina Nehwal defeated He Bingjiao of China 18-21, 21-12, 21-18 in the semi-finals of the Indonesia Masters.
- Sixth seed Nehwal will play Spain’s Carolina Marin the final on 27 January.
- The match is scheduled to begin tentatively at 3pm IST. It will be broadcast on Star Sports.
India shuttler Saina Nehwal stormed into the finals of the Indonesia Masters with a win over sixth seed He Bingjiao in Jakarta.
In their maiden meeting, the two-time Commonwealth Games champion defeated her Chinese opponent 18-21, 21-12, 21-18 in the semi-final on Saturday, 26 January.
Eighth seed Saina, who had reached the finals at the last edition, will now face Spain's three-time World Champion and reigning Olympic champion Carolina Marin in the final on 27 January.
Game 1
In their first ever meeting in international circuit, Saina showed better court coverage and unleashed some telling smashes to trouble the 21-year-old left-hander.
Saina lagged 0-2 initially but clawed back to 5-5 with a couple of smashes.
Another powerful straight smash left the Chinese stranded as the Indian led 8-6. She then went into the break with a 11-7 advantage.
The Hyderabadi continued the good run after the breather to lead 16-11 but netted twice to allow Bingjiao narrow down the equation to 15-16.
A brilliant cross court smash and a superb drop helped the Chinese keep the deficit to a point till 17-18.
Bingjiao then won a video referral on a line call to make it 18-18. She then unleashed a smash to grab a crucial 19-18 advantage, before holding two game points. The Chinese sealed it when Saina went wide.
Game 2
In the second game, Saina pulled away doubling the lead at 6-3 after an initial duel.
Easy mistakes started creeping in Bingjiao's game as she found the net often, sent the shuttle long and wide to allow Saina enter the break with a huge 11-3 lead.
After the interval, Bingjiao took four straight points before Saina engaged her rival in rallies to make it 14-7.
A beautiful-looking cross court net return helped the Indian swell the lead to 17-9. She then produced two roaring cross court smashes to inch closer to the game point, which she grabbed once the Chinese went wide.
Saina eventually took the match to the decider with a cross court slice.
Game 3
In the final game, Saina continued to go strong, taking a 6-3 lead early on and then extended it to 9-5. The Indian unleashed a straight smash to leave Bingjiao on the ground.
The Chinese, however, drew parity at 10-10 with a powerful smash which Saina could only sent to the net. Another rally ensued which ended with another shot going to net as Bingjiao led 11-10 at the break.
After the breather, Saina caught up with the Chinese at 13-13 after prevailing in a rally. The Indian tried to put the shuttle in difficult positions and kept it in play.
She earned the lead at 17-16 with yet another smash to let out a scream. Bingjiao went to net again and hit wide next as Saina celebrated with fist pumps.
The Indian grabbed two match points after punishing her rival for a mistake and sealed it with yet another precise return.
Saina had won a gold medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, a bronze at the Asian Games, besides reaching finals at the Denmark, Indonesia Masters and Syed Modi International last year.
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