BWF Chinese Taipei Open 2019: Top seed Saina Nehwal favourite to lift trophy; Sourabh Verma looks to repeat 2016 title run

File image of Saina Nehwal. Reuters[/caption]On a comeback trail since regaining fitness, a former top 10 player H S Prannoy is another Indian shuttler to look out for during the week, especially after his victory over Chinese legend Lin Dan at the recent World Championship in Basel, Switzerland.World No 8 Saina looked good at the World Championships before a few controversial umpiring decisions led to her defeat to Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt last week.Saina will face Korea's An Se Young in the opening round and looks the favourite to lift the trophy even though she is likely to face stiff competition from Canada's second seed Michelle Li, USA's third seed Beiwen Zhang and Korea's fourth seed Sung Ji Hyun among others.In men's singles, Sourabh will look to continue his momentum following his triumph at the Hyderabad Open. The Madhya Pradesh shuttler will open his campaign against Japan's Kazumasa Sakai.Among others, currently ranked 27th, Prannoy, who lost a lot of time after being hit by a stomach problem late last year, will meet local favourite Wang Tzu Wei in the first round.Third seed Sameer Verma, who had clinched three titles last year, will lock horns with Malaysia's Daren Liew.Women's doubles pair of Aparna Balan and Prajakta Sawant too are in the fray. They will take on sixth seeds Chow Mei Kuan and Lee Meng Yean of Malaysia in the first round.