Saina sails into Indonesia Open 2nd round

Jakarta: Defending champion Saina Nehwal was off to a flying start at the Indonesian Open Super Series, beating Bulgaria`s Linda Zecheri in straight games in her opening match.

The fourth seeded Saina took just 29 minutes to get past the unseeded Zechiri 21-12, 21-10 in a lopsided contest. Saina will next face another unseeded Bulgarian in Petya Nedelcheva, who rallied to defeat Ukraine`s Larisa Griga 17-21, 21-19, 21-9. Zechiri did put up some fight to start with but Saina soon began to control the proceedings, reeling off 10 straight points to clinch the opening game that was tied 12-12 at one stage.Saina was in top form in the second game as she quelled Zechiri`s challenge with superior net play and fine smash winners. PTI