Saina Nehwal lost to Yihan Wang of China in the girls' singles final of World Junior Badminton tourney in S Korea on Saturday.
NEW DELHI: 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 on Friday.
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 semifinal.
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 reached the quarterfinals in two other events that took her ranking from around the 100 at the start of the year to the current 32 in the women's circuit.
Saina played a crucial role in India clinching the team bronze at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne early this year.
I was exhausted, says Nehwal
India's rising shuttler Saina Nehwal attributed her defeat in the final of the World Junior badminton tournament to exhaustion which hampered her movement on the court.
Saina, who was just one win away from creating history in India before losing to top seed Chinese Wang Yihan 13-21, 9-21, said having played some tough matches before reaching the final took a heavy toll on her.
"I was tired. My legs were a bit stiff and I could not move so well on the court," Saina said.
World number 32 Saina admitted she was excited to play her first final in a world championship but could not give her best on Saturday.
"I could have played better. I played many negative points. It was not my 100 per cent. She caught me more on my backhand smashes and during full court rallies," she said.
Saina, however, denied that she was under any pressure.
"I did not take much pressure though I know there were many hopes attached to me but I could not help it," she said.
The 16-year-old rated her opponent as a better player than herself but said she could beat Wang.
"She is a better player than I am. She recently beat senior world number one Xie Xing Seng in an invitational tournament. But she is beatable. I can beat her," said the player who had an otherwise superb week reaching the final.
The 14th seed Hyderabadi, who won the Philippines Open in May by beating then world number 4 Xu Huwain of Germany on the way, next plays the Seniors Asian Satellite in Mumbai from November 14 to 17 and then the Asian Games in Doha from December 2.
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