India’s Saina Nehwal lost her opening encounter against Thailand’s Porntip Buranaprasertsuk 16-21, 21-19, 14-21 in the China Open in Fuzhou on Wednesday. Nehwal last played during the Rio Olympics where she lost in the second round.
Nehwal, who returned to the circuit after an injury, failed to get going in the first game itself. She was the runners-up in the last edition and was looking to make a winning return. However, she lost the first game 16-21 to Buranaprasertsuk against whom she enjoyed a nine-game winning record. In the second game, she staged a comeback and won 21-19. But, Buranaprasertsuk upped the ante in the third game and outclassed Nehwal 14-21 to win the match and send Nehwal packing.
PV Sindhu, the silver-medallist at the Rio Olympics, won her opening game thrashing Chinese Taipei’s Lee Chia Hsin 21-12, 21-16 to make it to round two.
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