KUALA LUMPUR: India's Olympic medallist shuttler Saina Nehwal sailed into the second round of the USD 700,000 Malaysian Open with a convincing 21-12 21-16 win over Yip Pui Yin of Hong Kong here today.
The London Games bronze medal needed 42 minutes to clear the first hurdle at the Axiata Arena.
Saina, who had won gold at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, has been in good form of late and she will look to continue in similar vein.
However, the Indian has been drawn in a tough group and is meeting second seed Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in the second round.
Saina gave ample glimpse of her fitness and form en route to winning her match.
Saina, who was runners-up at Indonesia Masters earlier in the year, will also look to continue her good run in the next round.
Rejuvenated after a month-long break, India's other top shuttlers, including P V Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth, will also resume their quest for glory in the south-east Asia leg of BWF world tour.