Saina will look to get over the disappointment of her first-round exit at China last week when she takes on Korean Kim Hyo Min. Fifth seeded Saina, ranked 10th in the world, has done well in the major events this year, grabbing a second gold at Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and a bronze at the Jakarta Asian Games. But, the Indian has been inconsistent in the BWF events. 

Saina was ousted by Korea’s Sung Ji Hyun last week in China and will have a tough task at hand as she is likely to face third seed Japanese Nozomi Okuhara in the quarter-finals. In men’s singles, Sameer Verma will carry the Indian flag after Kidambi Srikanth pulled out after playing back-to-back tournaments in Japan and China in the last two weeks. 

Sameer has been troubled by injuries but he has done well when he has been fit, winning titles at Swiss Open and Hyderabad Open. The 23-year-old Dhar will play Denmark’s Anders Antonsen in his opening match. If the Indian crosses the opening round, he is expected to meet reigning world champion Kento Momota of Japan. 

Vaishnavi Reddy Jakka will also compete in the tournament, taking on formidable sixth seed Beiwen Zhang of USA in the opening round.