Saina keen to do well on return

Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal has said she was keen to defend her titles in Thailand and Indonesia when she returns to action post a freak toe injury.

It will be a busy month for the young Hyderabadi as she will feature in an event in Singapore after playing in Thailand and Indonesia.

The World No 2 Indian was forced to skip the Sudirman Cup after aggravating a toe injury during the India Open in April. She had suffered a hairline fracture on the small toe of her left foot before the home event.

“It was quite painful and I was not able to participate in Sudirman cup. But past is past. Moving ahead, I have fully recovered from injury,” Saina told PTI in an email interview.

The Hyderabadi had won the Thailand Grand Prix Gold and Indonesia Open last year and said she will look to repeat her performances in the back-to-back tournaments this month once again.

“I had good practice sessions for these upcoming three tournaments. I want to repeat my last year’s performance. Let see how best I do in these tournaments,” the 23-year-old said.

Thailand Open will get underway on Tuesday in Bangkok, followed by the Indonesia Super Series Premier from June 10-16 in Jakarta and the Singapore Super Series (June 18-23).

Saina has got the top billing in Thailand Open and will open her campaign against Renna Suwarno of Indonesia.

Given her consistent performance in the last couple of years and the absence of top Chinese players, Saina should enter the finals in Thailand without much ado.
However, Saina stressed on the competitiveness of the game and chose not to look too further ahead.