Badminton: Saina Nehwal crashes out of Rio Olympics

India’s Saina Nehwal played through injury in her shock loss to world no. 61 Maria Ulitina of Ukraine in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday.

The premier shuttlerlost the first set but tried hard to beat her lower ranked competitor in the second set but couldn’t make it.

Saina has been hampered by injuries in the last twelve months or so, and while victory in the Australian Open in June raised hopes of a second Olympics medal for the Indian, her competing in full fitness in Brazil remained a sort of question mark.

In a lop-sided first game, the Guntur-born player got off to a brilliant start as he raced away with a 11-2 lead with some solid net play and cross-court smashes before wrapping up the first game in his favour. “It’s heartbreaking loss. I also feel very bad about it”.

Srikanth stamped his authority with his strokes and also pushed his rival to make mistakes. The only bright spots on an otherwise gloomy day, with setbacks coming thick and fast from various quarters, were provided by shuttlers K Srikanth and P.V. Sindhu who atoned somewhat for Saina’s exit by reaching the pre-quarterfinals from their respective groups in men’s and women’s singles.

After few exchanges till the mid-half of the second game, the Indian shuttler showed some good skills with the combination of his diagonal shot and down the line smashes to take a 18-15 lead.

Then the score moved to 18-18 and, at the crucial juncture, Ulitina rallied back strongly and, though she lost a point, she picked up three points in succession to close out the match 21-18, 21-19.

Despite going into the break at 11-10, the Indian shuttler failed to seize the momentum after getting caught by drop and angled shots on multiple occasions. And, Nehwal – considered India’s premier female shuttler – was one of India’s biggest medal hopes following her exploits at the global level over the last decade.

Maria caught up again at 13-13 when Saina hit long.

In the opening game, Srikanth led 13-4 before moving to 17-5 with a towering cross court smash.

The Indian then hit wide to allow Maria earn the bragging rights after clinching the opening game.