> After Sania its Saina now!!!!!

Saina enters final


Saina Nehwal thwarted a spirited challenge from Bae Youn Joo of Korea to reach the girls' singles final at the World Junior Badminton Championship in Incheon, South Korea.

World No 32 Saina, who etched a stunning performance to prevail over the Korean 25-23, 21-13, is now one win away from creating history.

Saina, seeded 14th, won in just 35 minutes to set up a title clash with top seed Wang Yihan of China on Saturday. Yihan defeated Kim Moon of Korea 21-16, 21-13 in the other semifinal.



For Saina, the Korean was a tough nut to crack but the 16-year-old was at her aggressive best and played with purpose. “It was a good fight. The first game was long and was tough, but I played with patience and won. In the second game, I engaged her in long rallies and it paid off,” Saina said.

After winning the first game, Saina grew in confidence and went all guns blazing in the second. She broke away from 13-all and did not allow her opponent any chance from there on.

“We were tied 13-all in the second game, but then she started netting too often and I played my shots,” she said.

Expressing confidence with her current form, Saina said: “I am happy to reach the final and satisfied with the way I am playing. I have got some good wins in this tournament by defeating Indonesian, Malaysian, Chinese and Korean girls. I hope to carry the same form in the final also,” she said.

Though Saina's opponent in the final Wang Yihan is ranked 103 in the world, she has won her first international title -- IBF World Cup -- this year beating world No 2 and fellow Chienese Xie Xingfang.

“I have not played her before, but she is a good player and has defeated top players this year. It will be a tough match,” Saina said.

Saina Nehwal's dream run came to an end with a heart-breaking loss to top seed Wang Yihan of China in the girls' singles final at the World Junior Badminton Championships in Incheon, South Korea, on Saturday.

World no. 32 Saina, who could have created history in India by winning the title, bowed to the might of 18-year-old Wang, considered a world class potential with a 13-21, 9-21 verdict in 26 minutes.

"I have not played Wang before. She is a good player and has defeated top players this year. It will be a tough match," she had predicted yesterday.

It has been a fabulous week for Saina as the 14th seed had etched out a stunning performance to knockout Bae Youn Joo of Korea in the semi-final.

In the final, however, Wang proved to be a tough nut to crack for the 16-year-old Indian.

Reaching the final of a 128-draw event is still a creditable performance by Saina who has turned 2006 into a real breakthrough year.

The Hyderabadi teenager made it big when she won her first international title, the Philippines Open, in May by beating then world no. 4 Xu Huwain of Germany on the way.

She also reached the quarter-finals in two other events which took her ranking from around the 100 at the start of the year to the current 32 in the women's circuit.

Saina also played a crucial role in India clinching the team bronze at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne early this year.