Sindhu, a 2019 World Champion, lost 14-21, 21-15, 14-21 to Zhang in a match that lasted 55 minutes.
If Sindhu and Saina win their respective second round matches, they will face each other in the quarter-finals.
India's schedule at the Olympics on Wednesday, Day 5 of competition.
India's badminton ace P V Sindhu entered the summit clash of BWF World Tour Finals with a hard fought win over Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in the semi-finals, in Bali, on Saturday.
PV Sindhu had burst onto the scene when as a 16-year-old she had stunned London Olympics gold medallist Li in the quarterfinals of China Masters.
Sindhu was made to toil hard by China's He Bing Jiao
In front of her home crowd, Sindhu beat the Rio champion in straight games.
Rising Indian shuttler Malvika Bansod's impressive run at the Hylo Open Super 300 concluded with a runner-up finish, as she fell to Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt on Sunday.
Sindhu took just 33 minutes to get the better of American Lauren Lam 21-16 21-13
No Indian athlete since Independence has won multiple medals at a single Games.
Returning to action after a break, India's double Olympic medallist P V Sindhu on Friday bowed out of the Denmark open badminton tournament after losing in straight games to world no 8 Korean An Seyoung in the women's singles quarterfinals in Odense.
'It is a beautiful portrait of Ek Bharat, Sreshth Bharat.'
The duo is aiming for top-30 ranking and continued success in bigger tournaments.
PV Sindhu, who also won a silver medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics, admitted that she felt bad when people said she has a 'final phobia'. She was desperate to win the World Championships title last year after a string of runner-up finishes
Sindhu said she has to watch out for the Chinese players as well since they have been missing from the circuit for some time.
Deepika and Atanu form the mixed team and they kickstarted their training
Sindhu registered a stunning comeback win against Thailand's Phittayaporn Chaiwan
India's double Olympic medallist P V Sindhu cruised into the quarterfinals of the French Open badminton tournament with a straight-game win over Line Christophersen of Denmark in the women's singles second round in Paris. Sindhu, seeded third, prevailed 21-19, 21-9 over Christophersen, ranked 24th in the world, in 37 minutes late Thursday night.
All about IPL 2025 which kicks off on March 22, Saturday.
Satwik and Chirag jumped one spot in the latest BWF rankings to regain the fifth place.
Two-time Olympic medallist P V Sindhu stormed into the second round of the women's singles in the Syed Modi International Super 300 badminton tournament after a dominating victory over compatriot Tanya Hemanth, in Lucknow, on Wednesday.
A boy's alleged remark that the Education Minister 'doesn't know Kannada', irked Madhu Bangarappa, who holds the portfolio, as he directed officials to take action against the student.
Indian badminton ace P V Sindhu promised a very "different" version of herself after getting off to a rousing start at the Tokyo Olympics on Sunday.
India's P V Sindhu came into the semi-final contest with an overwhelming 4-1 head-to-head lead over Thailand's Chochuwong, but wasn't at her best.
Saina showed signs of regaining her form on her way to a sensational win over Chinese world number 9 He Bing Jiao
Young Indian shuttler Ashmita Chaliha recorded the first upset of the India Open when she stunned fifth seed Evgeniya Kosetskaya while top seed P V Sindhu sailed into the women's singles second round of the tournament, in Delhi, on Tuesday.
Mohammed Shami, who made a stunning return to competitive cricket in the Ranji Trophy, was selected for Bengal's squad for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20.
Also seen interacting with Prime Minister Modi was Olympic gold medallist javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra over a bowl of choorma.
Sindhu has said while there will be a lot of expectations on her going into the Tokyo Olympics
There's clearly no limit to how dramatic a wedding can be.
World champion P V Sindhu was beaten 18-21, 12-21 by Chinese Taipei's Tai Tzu-Ying in the semi-finals of the Olympics badminton and will play for the bronze medal now.
India's badminton ace, pulled out her A-game while interacting with fans on an Instagram Live event on National Sports Day.
Glimpses of Indian athletes in action at the 2024 Olympics on Sunday, July 28, 2024.
P V Sindhu stormed into the quarter-finals of the women's singles badminton at the Olympics with an easy 21-15, 21-13 victory over Denmark's Mia Blichfeldt in Tokyo on Thursday.
I don't want to respond to what her father has to say, if Sindhu says something, I will respond, Gopichand retorts to PV Sindhu's father's allegations of unsatisfactory training.
A round-up of Monday's action in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy tournament.
Check out how India's athletes fared on Day 5, Wednesday, July 31, 2024:
Star Indian shuttlers P V Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth fought their hearts out before suffering close defeats in their respective group 'B' openers at the US$ 1.5 million HSBC BWF World Tour Finals, in Bangkok, on Wednesday.
Star shuttlers, including P V Sindhu, will chase individual gold medals but doubles would also under the spotlight as India would aim to retain the mixed team title and continue their consistent run at the Commonwealth Games.
Earlier, the women's doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and N Sikki Reddy suffered their second successive loss in the event, going down fighting 19-21, 20-22 to Bulgaria's Gabriela Stoeva and Stefani Stoeva to bow out of contention.
