Saina Nehwal [Images] crushed the frail challenge of Jie Liu of China to storm into the semi-finals of the World Junior Badminton Championships in Incheon, South Korea, on Thursday.

The world No 32 kept the Indian hopes of bagging the girls' singles title alive after sweeping aside Jie 21-18, 21-8 in 34 minutes.

The 16-year old, who is just two games away from becoming the first Indian to win the world junior badminton crown, will meet Bae Youn Joo of Korea on Friday.

Joo was made to sweat by Wen Cheng of China but the Korean finally prevailed 10-21, 21-15, 21-14.

In the other semi-final, top seed Yihan Wang of China will take on another Korean, Moon [Images] Hi Kim.

Saina said she was taking the tournament match by match and not thinking about the title at the moment.

"I knew that my opponent was a good player so I was prepared for a tough match. I knew that it will be a hard work today and I am happy with the way I played," she said from Incheon.

"I moved well in the court. The first game was close and she (Jie) was very tired after that. I took my chances in the second game," she added.

"I am playing well and I am not thinking about the title. I want to win the semi-final first. That would also be a tough match."

National coach Pullela Gopichand said it has been a tough year for Saina, but credit should go to the Hyderabadi for pulling off hard-fought victories.

"This year it has been tough for her. She has been playing so many tournaments and she is also trying to improve her international rankings," he said.

"But she has defeated Indonesian, Malaysian and Chinese girls in the tournament so far. These are good wins and we are hoping that she continues with her form," Gopichand added.