Indian badminton player and London Olympic bronze medallist, Saina Nehwal suffered a defeat in the first round of the Orleans Masters badminton tournament on Wednesday. Her opponent was Turkey’s Neslihan Yigit, who managed to secure a victory over Nehwal in straight games, without dropping a single game.
Despite her best efforts, Nehwal couldn’t seem to find her rhythm in the match and was unable to mount a comeback against Yigit, who dominated the match with her aggressive play and precise shots. Unfortunately, Nehwal’s journey at the tournament came to an end with this loss, and she would have to wait for another opportunity to prove her mettle in the world of badminton.
What Happened At The Orleans Masters Tournament First Round?
Mithun Manjunath, Priyanshu Rajawat, Aakarshi Kashyap, and Tanya Hemanth successfully advanced to the second round of their respective matches. However, the celebrated Indian shuttler, Saina Nehwal, who returned to the court after missing a few tournaments, was defeated by Turkish qualifier Yigit in a rather one-sided encounter lasting 39 minutes. The scoreline read 16-21 14-21, as Saina struggled to find her form against the Turkish player.
Saina’s absence from a few recent tournaments was notable, and it was evident that she was still finding her rhythm as she took to the court for the Orleans Masters Tournament. Despite her best efforts, Saina was unable to match Yigit’s pace and lost in both games of the match.
Adding to her woes, Saina had her right knee heavily strapped, indicating that she may still be injured and dealing with it. Itcould have also contributed to the lacklustre Sania Nehwal performance on the court. Saina, who has dropped to 32 in the BWF Rankings after missing some tournaments, will now have to regroup and work on her game to bounce back from this early exit.
Sania Nehwal Performance Was Rather Disappointing
At the start of the match, Saina Nehwal appeared to be struggling and lacked her usual energy and speed. This was evident as she fell behind to a score of 4-11 against her opponent, Neslihan Yigit. Despite her slow start, Saina showed resilience and determination as she fought back to narrow the deficit to 13-15. However, her efforts were not enough to overcome the gap, and Yigit ultimately won the first game.
Moving on to the second game, Saina Nehwal appeared to be struggling with her rhythm, and her performance was visibly rusty. She fell behind again, trailing Yigit by a score of 6-11 at the mid-game interval. Unfortunately, Saina was unable to recover, and Yigit won the game, thus securing the match in straight sets.
In another match, Sameer Verma had a disappointing outing, as he squandered a game lead against his opponent, Nhat Nguyen of Ireland. Verma won the first game with a score of 21-19, but Nguyen fought back to win the next two games, with scores of 21-19 and 21-17, respectively. This resulted in Verma’s defeat, and he would now have to work on his game to perform better in future matches.
Other Updates on The Orleans Masters Tournament
There were also other first-round matches in the men’s singles category, where Indian players performed well. Mithun Manjunath managed to defeat Denmark’s higher-ranked Victor Svendsen, with a close score of 24-22, 25-23. Meanwhile, Priyanshu Rajawat beat his compatriot Kiran George with a score of 21-18, 21-13.
In the next round of the Orleans Masters Tournament, Manjunath will be facing Taipei’s Yu Jen, who had a stroke of luck as his opponent, fifth seed Rasmus Gemke, was not on the second game. On the other hand, Rajawat will face off against the top seed Kenta Nishimoto of Japan, who will be a formidable opponent for the Indian shuttler. These matches promise to be exciting, and fans will be eager to see how the Indian players fare against their opponents.
Kenta Nishimoto had a convincing victory over Chia Hao Lee of Taipei in the men’s singles, winning with a score of 21-18, 21-11. In the women’s singles, Tanya Hemanth managed to secure a close win of 21-17, 21-18 over Leonice Huet of France. Meanwhile, Aakarshi Kashyap had a tough match against Japan’s Natsuki Nidaira but fought back from a game down to win with a score of 8-21, 21-13, 8-21.
Tasnim Mir put up a good fight but eventually lost to Germany’s Yvonne Li with a score of 22-20, 13-21, 5-21. There are some upcoming matches which are sure to keep fans on the edge of their seats as they cheer on their favourite players. As for Sania Nehwal, there is still some time before she will showcase her skills in the tournament.
