TheSportsCampus

It was a moment of immense pride and joy for Indian badminton fans when Saina scored her last point against China's Xuerui Li at the Djarum Indonesia Open today, winning the title for a third time. This win has raised many hopes for a medal in the Olympics next month with her father, Harvir Singh, sharing that it has boosted her morale and it is great that it has come just before the Olympics.

The match was a close one. Saina lost the first set comprehensively, but she did not lose her confidence. Saina was forced to work exceptionally hard in the following two sets and just about nicked them. The last two sets were quite close. Saina came perilously close to losing the second set as it extended to a game of 22, but the Indian kept attacking, and her aggressive approach paid dividends. The third set too was a close one with Saina finally clinching the match on her second match point, 13-21, 22-20 and 21-19.

This is Saina's second win in the last 10 days. On June 10 she had won the Thai Open and has now followed it up with a second straight win in Asia. She is presently the best badminton player in India, and therefore it is no surprise that the nation will look to her for a medal at the Olympics.

Simon Santoso won the men's singles title.