Denmark Open: Below-par Saina Nehwal,brave Gurusaidutt crash out

Defending champion Saina Nehwal of India crashed out of the Denmark Super Series Premier.

Defending champion Saina Nehwal of India crashed out of the Denmark Super Series Premier after suffering a shock three-games defeat at the hands of Koreas Sung Ji Hyun in the quarterfinals of the womens singles competition here on Friday. Compatriot RMV Gurusaidutt also made an exit following a straight-games defeat at the hands of Chinas Pengyu Du in the mens quarterfinals.

Nehwal,ranked No.4 in the world,squandered a one-game lead and committed too many unforced errors to go down 21-13,18-21,19-21 to sixth seed Sung.

In the opening game,Nehwal,who hadnt lost to the Korean in their four previous meetings,moved to a 4-1 lead early on but Sung soon turned the tables and managed a slender 11-10 lead at the break.

The Indian got back into the lead with a flick of the wrist at the net and with the Korean making a series of unforced errors,Nehwal reached 15-11. The Indian shuttler stepped up and conceded just two more points before taking the game.

Tables turned

Playing on the other side of the court in the second game,Nehwal took a little time to judge the length of the shuttle initially,which allowed Sung to have a 2-0 lead. But a drop and a lucky point at the net helped the Indian to make it 3-2.

Sung levelled the scores at 6-6 with Nehwal making a few errors in judging the shuttle. The Korean led 8-7 after the Indian hit long and then made it 10-8 with Nehwal hitting the net and going wide.

The Korean put Nehwal under further pressure as she won six straight points to make it 18-12.

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Nehwal threatened to make a comeback but once again she hit it long to give Sung five game points. She saved three of those but another error of judgment at the baseline helped the Korean to take the second game.

Having grown in confidence after the second game,Sung fought tooth and nail. In fact,the Indian seemed to be heading for a win at 16-13,but Sung again clawed back. The duo were engaged in aggressive rallies but Nehwal faltered at the net to allow Sung take to 19-17 lead. Nehwal drew level once more,but two back to back errors handed the Korean the game and the match.

Gurus late charge too little

In the mens singles competition,Gurusaidutt too bowed. Guru showed glimpses of brilliance in the second game but he could not give himself a fighting chance as he went down 11-21 19-21 in a 46-minute match.

The World No.3 Du was much better with his smashes and net play and he didnt allow Guru to come close in the first game.

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Guru,who had beaten the Chinese in the only encounter in 2011 Hong Kong Open,tried to regroup his resources and put up a tough fight in the second game.

Infact,the Indian was leading 7-3 at one stage but Du put the pressure on Guru and clawed back at 12-12. After that,a tough battle ensued as Du turned the tales on the Indian,reaching 19-17. Guru could not break Dus game at this stage as the Chinese sealed his semifinal berth.