Indonesia Masters: Saina ousts Bingjiao, soars into final

Live updates from the Indonesia Masters semifinal. India's Saina Nehwal takes on China's He Bingjiao.

Updated : Jan 26, 2019 16:26 IST

Saina Nehwal (in picture) defeated Pornpawee C. in the quarterfinals. Photo: AFP
Saina Nehwal (in picture) defeated Pornpawee C. in the quarterfinals. Photo: AFP
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Saina Nehwal (in picture) defeated Pornpawee C. in the quarterfinals. Photo: AFP

Welcome to Sportstar 's live coverage of the Indonesia Open. It's a clash of the heavyweights. Saina Nehwal, the World No. 9, faces He Bingjiao, the World No. 7, in the semifinals.

Saina will face the winner of the second semifinal between Carolina Marin and Yufei Chen in Sunday's final.

4:07pm: A forehand smash seals the win for Saina. She makes an astounding comeback to defeat He Bingjiao 18-21, 21-12, 21-18 to soar into the final of the Indonesia Open.

4:05pm: You blink and you'd miss a point, that's how fast this game is turning out to be! Bingjiao's clever lob catches Saina by surprise and the scoreline is now 18-19 in the Indian's favour.

4:04pm: That's four points in a row for Saina! Bingjiao tries to go crosscourt but fails to keep it on the court as Saina now has a three-point lead. The Indian leads 19-16.

4:03pm: She gets it right this time! Saina challenges the umpire's call and replays showed that Bingjiao's return did indeed sail past the line. We're back on level terms at 16-16.

4:01pm: This game is going down to the wire! Bingjiao has a slender one-point lead at 16-15.

3:57pm: We're back on level terms in this pulsating third game. Bingjiao's forehand just misses the line and the scorecard reads 13 apiece.

3:55pm: Saina goes for the spectacular but her smash sails wide. Bingjiao now has a two-point lead at 13-11.

3:52pm: What a stunning rally. Bingjiao is forced on the backfoot and she puts up a steely defence to get the point and take an all-important 11-10 lead in this deciding third game.

3:50pm: Saina sets up Bingjiao beautifully and rains down a thunderous smash to pocket the point. The Indian is slowly inching towards sealing a spot in the final, she leads 10-6.

3:47pm: Unfortunate. Saina tries the cheeky dropshot but only manages to find the net. She leads 6-3.

3:44pm: Ah, what a venemous smash! Bingjiao lets one rip down-the-line and makes it 2-3.

3:41pm: That's the game. Saina makes a strong comeback to clinch the second game 21-12. We're now on to an exciting third game!

3:41pm: Bingjiao's lob goes wide and Saina now has nine game points.

3:40pm: She out everything behind that smash! A massive forehand smash extends Saina's lead to 19-10.

3:38pm: How good was that? Saina's stunning deft backhand drop leaves Bingjiao in awe. The Indian leads 18-9.

3:35pm: Bingjiao makes inroads to claim four points but Saina still has the upper hand. She leads 14-7.

3:33pm: Impressive play from Saina here. She was trailing 1-2 but has leaped to a massive 11-3 lead in no time! Can she take the second game and force the tie into a deciding third game?

3:30 pm: That's huge! Saina plays a thunderous down-the-line smash to make it 1-2.

3:26pm: He Bingjiao bounces back to take the first game 21-18. Saina just couldn't finish and throwing away the initiative she had for the most part of the game.

3:23pm: This has been a see-saw game after the interval, with Bingjiao being more aggressive and clawing back to make make it 18-18.

3:15pm: At the break of the first game, Saina leads 11-7. The Indian ace seems to have found momentum after a slow start.

3:13pm: Saina makes a comeback after early nerves to make it 6-6. Too early to predict anything at the moment.

3:10pm: We are all set for the start, both players warming up. And Bingjiao immediately shoots to a 5-3 lead in the first game.

Before the women's singles semifinal begins, here are the updates from the men's singles matches

Anders Antonsen beats Indonesia's Jonatan Christie 21-18, 21-16

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After finishing as the runner-up at the Syed Modi Badminton Championships in November, 2018, Saina's run ended in the semifinals at the Malaysia Masters last week. Can she go one better this time?

Bingjiao, from China, finished as a quarterfinalist at the Malaysia Masters.

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