Indians can beat Chinese, says Saina Nehwal

New Delhi: Saina Nehwal said on Tuesday that Indians can beat their Chinese opponents in badminton. But the ace shuttler is aware of the difficulties in repeating such performances.

"Indians can beat Chinese. It's not that we cannot beat them. But, it is always going to be tough. One time, if you beat them, second time, they will come prepared for your match. It is not that second time you can beat them easily.” she said.

In a history-making feat for Indian badminton, Saina and young Kidambi Srikanth captured both the individual titles at the 2014 China Open Super Series Premier tournament, defeating Chinese opponents en route.

Badminton power-house China have dominated the sports, producing global stars from their near-perfect conveyor belt, and winning Olympics and World titles, year on year. But the recent coup in Fuzhou by the Indian team has given this super-fast sport a new set of champions, who are ready to fight and go for the impossible.

“Every time, you will have to face a fight and you have to be very, very strong to play against them. You have to keep on fighting and hopefully we can win a few times with them, not easy, but we can give our best. It is not impossible," the Olympic medallist added.

In the women's final, the 24-year-old from Hyderabad defeated Japanese Akane Yamaguchi in straight sets to win her eighth Super Series title. Having established herself as one of the global stars in the sport, it was not a ground-breaking title for Saina.

But Srikanth's straight sets victory over the living legend, Lin Dan for the men's individual title elevated Indian badminton into a new level. The 21-year-old, in the process, became the first Indian to win a Super Series Premier Men's title, a feat even his coach Pullela Gopichand and legendary Prakash Padukone failed to achieve. Chinese Lin Dan is the reigning World and Olympic champion.

Earlier, it was considered almost impossible to beat Chinese players, especially in major finals. But with Saina and Srikanth upsetting the order, Indian badminton can only hope for more titles and champions.

With agency inputs