10:48 (IST)16 NOV 2016
10:46 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Porntip Buranaprasertsuk takes the last two points quickly to close the door on Saina Nehwal with a 21-16, 19-21, 21-14 win.
10:44 (IST)16 NOV 2016
And she is slowly inching towards the finish line as she makes it 19-14
10:44 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The Thai builds on her lead to go up 18-14.
10:42 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The Thai goes up 16-13. Time is running out. Can Saina stage an improbable comeback once more?
10:41 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Saina needs to summon the same fighting spirit and courage she showed in the latter stages of Game 2. The Thai is right now ahead 15-11.
10:40 (IST)16 NOV 2016
On resumption, the Thai grabs two points to take a lead of 13-10.
10:38 (IST)16 NOV 2016
At the mid-game interval, it is the Thai who has the advantage, albeit a slim one, as she leads 11-10
10:37 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The game is all even once more as they are locked at 10-10
10:36 (IST)16 NOV 2016
But the Thai takes a quick couple of points to lead 9-8
10:35 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Saina grabs the lead yet again to surge ahead 8-7. Can she hold on to it this time?
10:32 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The early stages are now expectedly very competitive and the Thai has a very slim edge of 6-5
10:30 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The Thai too is fighting back and makes it even at 4-4
10:29 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Game 3
Nehwal starts the third game with the same aggressive intent and leads 3-2.
10:28 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The start to the decider will be critical. Saina cannot afford to lose a string of points.
10:26 (IST)16 NOV 2016
From trailing 4-11 at the mid-game break to taking the second game 21-19, Saina Nehwal never ceases to amaze!
10:24 (IST)16 NOV 2016
And Saina Nehwal is BACK!!!!!! She takes the second game 21-19.
10:23 (IST)16 NOV 2016
And the turnaround is HERE! Nehwal has the lead for the first time in this game as she goes up 19-18
10:22 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Once more, Nehwal has reduced the deficit to just one point as she now trails 16-17.
10:21 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Nehwal now trails 14-16. Credit to the Thai too for not making it easy for Saina.
10:19 (IST)16 NOV 2016
And she makes it 13-14 now. The lioness in Saina Nehwal has showed up!
10:18 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Saina has closed the gap and made it 8-11. The fightback is definitely ON!
10:16 (IST)16 NOV 2016
It's an uphill task now but never count Saina Nehwal out! She has always been a fighter and she will not bow out without giving it her all. Currently, the Indian trails 8-12
10:14 (IST)16 NOV 2016
As Saina is trying her best to get back into competitive mode, the Thai makes the most of it and goes into the mid-game break with a solid 11-4 lead.
10:11 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The Thai builds on her lead to surge ahead 7-2.
10:11 (IST)16 NOV 2016
GAME 2
Porntip Buranaprasertsuk is moving fast here and Nehwal is struggling a bit with her pace. Clearly, the rust is there. The Thai goes up 4-1.
10:09 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Saina is still feeling the effects of her long hiatus as she could not stop Porntip Buranaprasertsuk from surging to a 20-16 lead and convert on her very first game point to take the game, 21-16.
10:05 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Nehwal tried her best to assert herself here and took a slender lead of 16-15 before her opponent came back to level once more for 16-16
10:03 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The Thai too is fighting back and thus we have an enthralling game on our hands. 14-14
10:01 (IST)16 NOV 2016
And even makes it all level. The score is 13-13 now!
10:01 (IST)16 NOV 2016
But Saina, the fighter is BACK! She cuts down the lead and closes in to 12-13.
09:59 (IST)16 NOV 2016
After the break the Thai is still maintaining a three-point lead over her illustrious rival, 12-9.
09:57 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Saina is unable to stop her opponent from getting to a half-time lead. The Thai goes into the mid-game break with an 11-8 advantage.
09:56 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The Thai has now jumped to a 9-7 lead as she continues to put pressure on the Indian.
09:54 (IST)16 NOV 2016
But the World No. 13 Thai is exploiting Nehwal's movement and gets to level the score 6-6
09:53 (IST)16 NOV 2016
09:53 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Nehwal now gets to add two more points to her kitty and soars to a 6-4 lead.
09:52 (IST)16 NOV 2016
The early stages are getting competitive and Nehwal has a slim edge now - 4-3
09:51 (IST)16 NOV 2016
PV Sindhu has wrapped up this game in 34 minutes and won the contest 21-12, 21-16
09:51 (IST)16 NOV 2016
She could not have asked for an easier opponent. World No. 13 Porntip Buranaprasertsuk of Thailandhas lost 9 out of 10 times to Saina and the Indian is expected to breathe easy here.
09:50 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 16-21 PV Sindhu - She takes it. Sindhu has taken the second game and the match. BRILLIANT from PV Sindhu.
09:49 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Meanwhile, three months after an ill-fated campaign at the Rio Olympics which led to a knee surgery and a consequent three-months hiatus, India's other golden girl Saina Nehwal is FINALLY back on the court!
09:48 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 15-19 PV Sindhu - Sindhu gets two more points. She is getting close.
09:46 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 14-17 PV Sindhu - Sindhu finally takes a point and if she can take a couple more, it will be match for her.
09:46 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 14-16 PV Sindhu - Lee is 2 points behind Sindhu and we are moving towards the business end of this game.
09:44 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 11-16 PV Sindhu - A string of continuous points from Lee and she is well within Sindhu's tally of 15.
09:43 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 8-15 PV Sindhu - Lee gets a couple of points but I think it is too late.
09:42 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 6-15 PV Sindhu - Sindhu is in the driver's seat here. She should seal the match soon.
09:39 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 4-11 PV Sindhu - We are just about half an hour into the game and Sindhu has been all class today.
09:39 (IST)16 NOV 2016
Chia Hsin Lee 4-11 PV Sindhu - She has added two more points. The end is looking near for Lee.
Saina might have lost but not before reminding the world what a fighter she still is! This was her very first match after three months of hiatus that saw her having a knee surgery. If this is the start, then surely better things are to come soon and she won't take long to get back to where she belongs!