Saina Nehwal, K Srikanth reach Australian Open semis

Sydney : Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal produced a determined performance as she advanced to the semifinals of the Australian Open Super Series with a hard-fought win over Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon in the women’s singles event here on Friday.

Seventh seed Saina, who is eyeing her maiden title of the season, recorded a 28-26, 21-16 win over second seed Intanon in a gruelling quarterfinal clash that lasted 56 minutes. She will next face fourth seed Wang Yihan in the semi-finals on Saturday.

The 26-year-old had made a slew of semifinal finishes at the Swiss Grand Prix Gold, India Super Series, Malaysia Super Series Premier Open and Asia Badminton Championships this year and is trying to break the last-four jinx.

In men’s singles event, Kidambi Srikanth registered a 21-18, 21-17 win over South Korea’s Kwang Hee Heo to progress through to the semifinals. (ANI)