Saina Nehwal wins India Open badminton tournament

New Delhi: Ace shuttler Saina Nehwal won the women's singles title of the India Open Superseries for the first time at the Siri Fort Sports Complex here on Sunday.

The top seed defeated Thai Ratchanok Intanon 21-16, 21-14 in 49 minutes.

This is Saina's second title of the year after winning the India Grand Prix Gold in January in Lucknow. She had also reached the All England final earlier this month where she lost to reigning World Champion Carolina Marin of Spain.

Previously, Saina's best performance at her home Super Series was a quarterfinal finish last year.

World No.2 Saina is assured of the No.1 spot when the Badminton World Federation (BWF) revises its rankings on Thursday.

The 25-year-old's compatriot Kidambi Srikanth will play his men's singles final against Danish Viktor Axelsen later in the day.

Saina, on Saturday, had thrashed Hashimoto 21-15, 21-11 in a match that lasted for 43 minutes to set up a title clash with former world champion Hashimoto.

Saina Nehwal created history after she became the first Indian woman shuttler to attain the world number one ranking after her closest challenger for the spot, Spain's Carolina Marin, lost in the India Open Super Series semifinal here.

The London Olympic bronze-medallist has won a staggering 14 international titles in her glorious career, and most recently she became the first Indian woman to make the finals of the prestigious All England Championships in Manchester.