BWF Rankings: Saina Nehwal set to climb back into top 10 

What’s the story?

The BWF World Rankings list that will release on Thursday, February 1, 20178, is set to see a lot of shuffle after the conclusion of the Indonesian Masters. Former World No. 1 Saina Nehwal, who made it to the finals of the tournament, is all set to climb back into the top 10 after dropping down to 12th in last week’s rankings.

In case you didn’t know…

Saina had slipped out of the top 10 in the BWF world rankings released last week on Thursday, January 25, 2018. She dropped to 12th with 51320 points after being inside the top 10 for two months. Saina had opted to give this year’s Malaysia Masters, a tournament she had won last year, a miss. As a result, points were deducted and she slipped out of top 10.

The heart of the matter

The Olympic bronze medallist displayed excellent form in the recently concluded Indonesian Masters.

In the first round, Saina saw off Chen Xiaoxin, who tried to stage a terrific fight back in the dying stages of the match, with a 21-12, 21-18 win, thus setting up a quarter-final clash with fellow compatriot PV Sindhu.

The match, which was expected to be a close affair, turned out to be a one-sided one with Saina completely dominating Sindhu. Then, she went on to beat World No. 4 Ratchanok Intanon 21-19, 21-19 in the semi-finals and progressed to the final, her first in over a year.

However, Tai Tzu Ying, the World No. 1, proved to be too hot to handle as the 27-year-old Indian suffered a 9-21, 13-21 defeat.

What’s next?

Saina will next be seen in action at the India Open later next week in New Delhi.

Author’s take

She has shown only flashes of her brilliance at the Indonesian Masters and honestly, she is capable of much more. Once the season gets going, we will surely see a much more polished Saina who can definitely win a few prestigious titles.