World No. 10 Sania Nehwal defeated Indonesia’s Fitriani 21-15, 21-14 to advance to the semi-final stage of the Malaysia Masters Grand Prix Gold on Friday.
Nehwal began slowly, with Fitriani taking an early advantage in the first game. The Indian trailed 6-11 heading into the break. The 26-year-old, however, gained momentum soon after the restart. She raced past her opponent and eventually took the game with a margin of six points.
In the second, she maintained the momentum, heading into the break at 11-6. She closed out the game soon with seven point gap between her and Fitriani.
Meanwhile in the men’s draw, India’s Ajay Jayaram failed to qualify for the last-four stage after losing to Anthony Ginting 13-21, 8-21.