Saina will be strong favourite for Indian Open
April 7th, 2011 - 8:05 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, April 7 (IANS) Saina Nehwal will be the strong favourite to win her second badminton title of the year in the Indian Open Super Series beginning at the Siri Fort Sports complex here April 26.
The country’s first Super Series tournament will see participation from 220 players from 16 countries. Badminton powerhouse China, however, will skip the event and that enhances Saina’s chances of victory.
Saina, ranked third in world, won the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold last month. Last year, she captured five titles, including three Super Series crowns. However, she injured her ankle in winning in Hong Kong title and skipped the Super Series events in Malaysia and South Korea at the start of the year.
The Indian Open will be the perfect tournament for Saina to win her fifth Super Series title. Saina will have fond memories of her last appearance here when she won the Commonwealth Games gold in front of an adoring home crowd and helped India pip England in the medals tally for a second place finish.
“Saina is the top seed in the tournament and therefore favourite to win the title,” said coach Pullela Gopichand, who was here for the launch ceremony of the event.
“She is fit and high on confidence after her victory in the Swiss Open. Hopefully she will have a good tournament.”
Gopichand said that her ligament injury has healed. “She is putting on the straps as a precaution,” he said.
The men’s singles will see stiff competition with the presence of World No.1 Malaysian Lee Chong Wei, Indonesian veteran Taufik Hiddayat and Denmark’s Peter Gade.
“The field is competitive but I hope players like Parupalli Kashyap and Arvind Bhat can cause some upsets and move beyond the last eight. Kashyap won the bronze in the Commonwealth Games here and playing at home will be an advantage.”
“It is also an opportunity for younger players like Sai Praneeth and H.S. Prannoy to show their talent,” he said.
India will also be looking at Jwala Gutta and V.Diju to come good in mixed doubles.
“Diju has a bit of a problem with his back but he should be fine before the tournament. They have a good chance of winning the title,” said Gopichand.
- Saina confident of making a mark in Indian Open - Apr 25, 2011
- Saina carrying India's hopes at World Badminton in London - Aug 07, 2011
- Five Indian shuttlers qualify for London Games - May 04, 2012
- Gopichand pins faith on new bunch of youngsters - Apr 28, 2011
- Indian badminton team for CWG announced - Sep 02, 2010
- Getting the hang of Chinese at the right time: Saina Nehwal (Interview) - Mar 25, 2012
- Singapore Super Series: Saina starts her campaign against Lu Lan - Jun 14, 2011
- Saina's win is amazing, says Gopichand - Jun 27, 2010
- Saina confident of extending unbeaten run at Worlds - Jul 13, 2010
- Saina strong favourite in Badminton Asia Championships - Apr 11, 2010
- Saina top seed in India Super Series badminton - Apr 09, 2011
- I can become world number one, says Saina Nehwal - Jun 29, 2010
- Saina favourite to win Indonesia Super Series - Jun 21, 2010
- Saina to spearhead Indian challenge in World Championships - Jul 13, 2010
- Saina's family ecstatic at daughter's feat - Dec 12, 2010
Tags: arvind, bhat, commonwealth games gold, crowns, events in malaysia, fond memories, gopichand, gutta, home crowd, jwala, kashyap, launch, lee chong wei, ligament injury, pip, playing at home, siri, south korea, sports complex, stiff competition