Dubai: India’s two players and China’s world champion continued with their winning run as the BWF Destination Dubai World Superseries lost another two players on second day’s play at the Hamdan Sports Complex on Thursday.

K. Srikanth, who had won his opener against Japan’s Kento Momota in straight sets on Wednesday, got a good measure of Indonesia’s Tommy Sugiarto before winning 21-18, 21-13, while Saina Nehwal also made it two out of two with a convincing 21-12, 21-19 win over Sung Ji Hyun of South Korea.

World champion Chen Long, meanwhile, was off to a slow start, but the Chinese had enough in him to outlast Denmark’s Hans-Kristian Vittinghus 13-21, 21-10, 21-9.

Srikanth will now meet Denmark’s Jan O Jorgensen – surprise loser against Kento Momota on Thursday - in their last Group B match, while Chen will be up against Son Wang Ho of South Korea on Friday.

Thursday’s meeting was the second one between Srikanth and Sugiarto with the Indonesian carrying the advantage following his win at the Maybank Malaysia Open in January this year.

Nehwal was pleased with the way things were working for her as she prepares for her next opponent from South Korea, Bae Yeon Ju on Friday. “It’s always good to pull off one more win. I like the reaction of the crowd. It is so similar to a cricket match in India. I just wish they keep coming and cheering us on. On my part I can only play the best I can and make the crowd happy,” Nehwal told Gulf News.

“Tomorrow is another day and I hope I can once again play my best and keep my rhythm,” she added.

Earlier in the morning session, the string of surprises continued with the women’s top seed Wang Shixian succumbing to her second straight loss, this time going down to South Korea’s Bae Yeon Ju 21-17, 21-17 in just 41 minutes. The world number two had lost to India’s Nehwal on the opening day of the competition.

In the men’s singles, Japan’s Momota bounced back from Wednesday’s loss to Srikanth for a shock 20-22, 21-18, 21-12 win over Jorgensen, while Korea’s Son Wan Ho retired while trailing Japan’s Kenichi Tago.

Meanwhile, the rigours of a full season have started showing as the 64-player field has lost at least six players at the end of the first two days itself. The Indonesian men’s pair of Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan walked off after Ahsan had a back sprain, while the women’s doubles also lost the Indonesian duo of Nitya Krishinda Maheshwari and Greysia Polii to injury.

On the second day, Korea’s Son Wan Ho retired while trailing Japan’s Kenichi Tago in the men’s singles, and was followed by China’s Wang Yihan who walked away while trailing Chinese Taipei’s Tai Tzu Ying.

RESULTS (Day 2)

Men’s Singles: Kenichi Tago (Japan) bt Son Won Ho (South Korea) 21-9, 11-3 (retd.); Kento Momota (Japan) bt Jan O Jorgensen (Denmark) 20-22, 21-18, 21-12; Chen Long (China) bt Hans-Kristian Vittinghus (Denmark) 13-21, 21-10, 21-9; K. Srikanth (India) bt Tommy Sugiarto (Indonesia) 21-18, 21-13.

Women’s Singles: Bae Yeon Ju (South Korea) bt Wang Shixian (China) 21-17, 21-17; Tai Tzu Ying (Chinese Taipei) bt Wang Yihan (China) 21-12, 11-8 (retd.); Akane Yamaguchi (Japan) bt Ratchanok Intanon (Indonesia) 21-15, 16-21, 21-12; Saina Nehwal (India) bt Sung Ji Hyun (South Korea) 21-12, 21-19.

Women’s Doubles: Luo Ying/Luo Yu (China) bt Reika Kakiiwa/Miyuki Maeda (Japan) 21-13, 21-14; Misaki Matsutomo/Ayaka Takahashi (Japan) bt Jung Kyung Eun/Kim Ha Na (South Korea) 21-15, 13-21, 21-12; Christinna Pedersen/Kamilla Rytter Juhi (Denmark) bt Chang Ye Na/Kim So Yeong (South Korea) 21-15, 21-12.

Mixed Doubles: Joachim Fischer Nielsen/Christinna Pedersen (Denmark) bt Tontowi Ahmad/Liliyana Natsir (Indonesia) 21-15, 22-20; Mathias Boe/Carsten Mogensen (Denmark) bt Hiroyuki Endo/Kenichi Hayakawa (Japan) 16-21, 21-19, 21-16; Lee Sheng Mu/Tsai Chia Hsin (Chinese Taipei) bt Liu Xiaolong/Qiu Zihan (China) 21-11, 21-17; Chai Biao/Hong Wei (China) bt Lee Yong Dae/Yoo Yeon Seong (South Korea) 21-16, 21-18; Zhang Nan/Zhao Yunlei (China) bt Chris Adcock/Gabrielle Adcock (England) 21-14, 21-17; Liu Cheng/Bao Yixin (China) bt Sudket Prapakamol/Saralee Thoungthongkam (Thailand) 21-7, 21-14.