Tokyo: World number one shuttler Saina Nehwal crashed out of the Japan Open Superseries after suffering a straight set defeat against unseeded Japanese Minatsu Mitani in the second round at Tokyo on Thursday.
Nehwal, who was seeded second in the tournament, was beaten 21-13, 21-16 in a 40-minute contest against superior opponent Mitani.
Mitani also pulled off a big upset when she trounced India’s PV Sindhu in the opening round on Wednesday.
The result means India’s challenge in women’s singles has come to an end.
Earlier, commonwealth silver-medallist pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa produced a valiant show before going down 20-22 21-18 13-21 against eighth seeds Zhao Yunlei and Zhong Qianxin of China. (ANI)