Singapore Open badminton | Saina Nehwal stuns Bing Jiao to join Sindhu, Prannoy in quarterfinals

Saina Nehwal prevailed 21-19 11-21 21-17 over the fifth seeded Chinese to make the last eight, her first in a super 500 event in over two and a half years

Olympic bronze medallist Saina Nehwal showed signs of regaining her form on her way to a sensational win over Chinese world number 9 He Bing Jiao in the Singapore Open in Singapore on July 14, 2022.

The two-time Commonwealth Games gold joined compatriots PV Sindhu and HS Prannoy in the quarterfinals of the tournament.

Saina, a London Olympics bronze medallist, prevailed 21-19 11-21 21-17 over the fifth seeded Chinese to make the last eight, her first in a super 500 event in over two and a half years.

The 32-year-old from Hyderabad has been battling a series of injuries and lack of form in the past few years, which forced her to skip the selection trials for the Commonwealth Games, in April.

In the last three years, Saina's best performance had been a semifinal finish at Orleans Master Super 100 last year. She had also reached the quarterfinal stage at Malaysia Masters and Barcelona Spain Masters in 2020.

Two-time Olympic medallist Sindhu and in-form Prannoy also stormed into the quarterfinals after registering fighting wins.

Third seed Sindhu staved off a spirited challenge from Vietnam's world number 59 Thuy Linh Nguyen 19-21 21-19 21-18 in the women's singles competition to set up a clash with China's Han Yue.