Wuhan: Ace shuttler Saina Nehwal and World No. 10 H.S. Prannoy entered the semifinals of the women’s and men’s singles competition at the 2018 Asia Badminton Championship here on Friday.
Nehwal continued her top form as she beat unseeded Korean Lee Jang Mi, 21-15, 21-13, in a 43-minute clash. She will now face World No. 1 Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei.
The two-time gold medallist of the recently concluded Gold Coast Commonwealth Games fought back valiantly from 3-8 and 9-13 deficits respectively, to take a lead 14-13, before finishing the first set in style.
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The second set was easy for Nehwal as Lee failed to put up a fight, leaving the former to take the second set and the game easily.
Prannoy, who missed out on a medal at the recently concluded Gold Coast Commonwealth Games eked out a hard-fought victory over second-seeded Korean Son Wan Ho, 18-21, 23-21, 21-12. He will now face Olympic champion and third seed Chen Long of China.
However, Gold Coast CWG silver medalist P.V. Sindhu failed to register a win as she lost 19-21, 10-21 in straight games to seventh-seeded Korean Sung Ji Hyun. Kidambi Srikanth too went down fighting to Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei, 12-21, 15-21 in straight games.