Super Saina upstages Baun

World No.4 Saina Nehwal’s late surge in 2011 continued, as she reached the final of the World Superseries Finals, beating No.5 Tine Baun in a one-sided enconter at Liu Zhou, China, on Saturday.

Saina now plays local hope and world No.1 Wang Yihan. If she can pull off a win, it will be her first Superseries title of 2011.

Baun has had an inconsistent year due to injuries, but the tall Dane is always a formidable player, able to use her 6 ft-plus frame to bring in big smashes, while her reach helps her cover the court effectively. These qualities were in evidence as she constantly troubled Saina, but the Dane looked rusty as well, and that enabled the Indian to constantly keep the pressure on her.

Saina, for her part, was remarkably consistent, making less than ten errors throughout the match. Her tosses were deep and high, preventing Tine Baun from smashing frequently, and she kept parrying with a range of flicks and cuts to keep the tall Dane off-balance.

Catch live text commentary of the match here: