Kowloon: Olympic silver-medallist P V Sindhu entered the semifinals of the Hong Kong Super Series after posting a hard-fought victory over Singapore's Xiaoyu Liang and broke into the top 10, even as Saina Nehwal bowed out here today.
Had the former World No. 1 and London Olympics bronze medallist Saina won her match, she would have met Sindhu in an all Indian battle in the semifinals.
The only time Saina and Sindhu clashed at the international circuit was at the 2014 India Grand Prix gold tournament and it was the senior shuttler who had the last laugh in a two-game match.
Earlier today, Sindhu, who clinched the China Open last week, staved off a stiff challenge from Xiaoyu Liang 21-17 21-23 21-18 in a quarterfinal match that lasted an hour and 19 minutes at the Hong Kong Coliseum.
Fifth-seeded Saina, meanwhile, failed to cross the hurdle as she was stunned by unseeded local shuttler Cheung Ngan Yi 8-21 21-18 19-21 in a contest that lasted an hour and 11 minutes. The Indian had earlier beaten Cheung Ngan Yi at the World Championships last year.
In the latest BWF rankings, Sindhu has jumped two places, courtesy her China Open win, to grab the ninth spot, while Saina, who is on a comeback trail after recovering from a serious injury, slipped five places to 11th, owing to her first round exit at the same event.
In the Destinational Dubai ranking for the BWF Super Series Final, Sindhu (38,490) is ahead of Saina (38,080) by a few points.
Hence, when the rankings come out next week, Sindhu is likely to qualify for the prestigious tournament, to be held next month