Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal today lost the number 1 world ranking after she faced a defeat in women’s singles semi-final to reigning Olympic champion Li Xuerui at the USD 500,000 Malaysia Open Superseries Premier.
The Chinese beat the third seeded Saina in a marathon match that lasted an hour and eight minutes. The top seed eventually won 13-21, 21-17, 22-20 at the Putra Stadium.
The Indian challenge in the tournament ended with Saina’a loss.
