BWF Superseries Finals 2013: Saina Nehwal bows out despite win over Bae Yeun Ju

A hard fought win against Bae was not enough for Saina to qualify for the Semifinals

Saina Nehwal bowed out of the BWF World Superseries Finals 2013 despite winning her final group game against Korea’s Bae Yeun Ju.

Saina had to win the match without the loss of a game to have a chance but Bae took the second game which meant that Saina had a net score of -2 games (3 games won, 5 lost) while Bae had a net of -1 (3 won, 4 lost).

Saina and Bae were close early on in the game and were level on 6 points when the Indian ace decided to shift into a higher gear. Saina scored five successive points as she went into the break leading 11-6. Saina made Bae play a fast game as she peppered her with smashes and quick shots.

Soon, Saina was comfortably leading 15-7 as Bae made a couple of mistakes in judging long shots. Bae reduced the lead by three points but Saina quickly took back three points in quick succession. Bae was able to take just one point more as Saina finished the first game quickly 21-11 in her favour.

The second game started with Saina taking a slight lead at 5-4 with a combination of long plays and ending with powerful smashes. She was leading 8-6 and had the upper hand but the Korean fought back to go into the break leading 11-10.The Korean then took the initiative as she kept Saina at a two point difference till 16-18, and wrapped up the game thanks to net faults by Saina. The Korean won the second game 21-17 and with the victory in the game, Bae sent Saina out of the championship.

Saina put her worries behind her and started the game brightly taking a quick 5-1 lead. Saina forced Bae into mistakes as the Korean repeatedly hit long. Saina was playing with renewed vigour as she pulled off some brilliant smashes down the sides, the Korean having no answer to Saina’s powerful shots. Saina led 11-5 going into the break.

Saina continued to pour smashes down the sides as the Korean struggled to match Saina’s speed of play. At 14-5,the match seemed to be over for the Korean but she came back, forcing Saina into errors at the net. Bae took the game to Saina but at the same time Saina bombarded Bae with smashes. The Korean managed to reduce the deficit to 19-13 in favour of Saina. But a ferocious smash down the left side and a feinted shot to the net completed the formalities for Saina.

The match ended 21-11,17-21,21-13 in favour of Saina.