China Open: Saina Nehwal Bows Out, P Kashyap Advances Into Second Round

Saina Nehwal's lackluster run of form continued as the Olympic bronze-medallist crashed out of China Open on Wednesday following a straight-game opening-round defeat to local favourite Cai Yan Yan. The World No.9 Saina lost 9-21 12-21 in the women's singles clash that lasted just 24 minutes to make an early exit from the USD 700,000 tournament.

However, in men's singles, Saina's husband and personal coach Parupalli Kashyap registered a comfortable straight-game victory over Thailand's Sitthikom Thammasin. The Indian outsmarted his Thai opponent 21-14 21-3 in 43 minutes. He will face seventh seed Victor Axelson of Denmark in the second round.

The mixed doubles pair of Pranav Jerry Chopra and Sikki Reddy also made a first-round exit. The duo went down 14-21 14-21 to Wang Chi-Lin and Cheng Chi Ya of Chinese Taipei.

The 29-year-old Saina has been going through a tough phase with regards to her fitness since claiming the Indonesia Masters in January. She made three consecutive first-round exits before reaching the quarterfinal of the French Open last month.