New Delhi: Indian shuttlers slumped to a narrow defeat against South Korea in a Group D tie of the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championship. India lost the thrilling clash 2-3 in the marquee tournament in Qingdao, China.
Though India went down fighting in the league match, it didn’t impact their knockout chances as they had already qualified for the quarterfinal after finishing second in the pool.
After making a sensational start to the campaign with a 5-0 win against Macau on Wednesday, India faced a tougher test a day later against the Koreans. The Indians gave a tough fight to their opponents but the men’s doubles pair of M.R. Arjun and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy lost the deciding rubber in straight games to Jin Yong and NA Sung Seung.
Poor start costs India
The mixed doubles pair of Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto started well by winning the opening game 21-11 but failed to capitalise on the good start, losing the next two games 12-21, 15-21 to go down in a gruelling match that lasted for almost an hour.
Meanwhile, India’s top-seeded women’s player at the tournament Malvika Bansod surrendered meekly against world no. 19 Sim Yu Jin. The young Indian shuttler, who was the runner-up in the 2022 edition of the Syed Modi International, slumped to a 9-21, 10-21 defeat in just 27 minutes.
Chennai shuttler Sathish Karunakaran brought India back into the contest with a hard-fought win over Cho Geonyeop 17-21, 21-18, 21-19 in one hour and 12 minutes. The win inspired the women’s doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand who restored parity following a 19-21, 21-16, 21-11 win over Kim Min Ji and Kim Yu Jung.
However, M.R. Arjun and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy slumped to a loss in straight games against Sung Seung and Jin Yong, going down 14-21, 15-23 in 53 minutes after giving a tough fight.
India 2-3 Korea: Matchwise results
Dhruv Kapila/Tanisha Crasto lost to Ki Dong Ju/Jeong Na Eun 21-11, 12-21, 15-21
Malvika Bansod lost to Sim Yu Jin 9-21, 10-21
Satish Karunakaran beat Cho Geonyeop 17-21, 21-18, 21-19
Gayatri Gopichand/Treesa Jolly beat Kim Min Ji/Kim Yu Jung 19-21, 21-16, 21-11
MR Arjun/Satwiksairaj Rankireddy lost to Jin Yong/Na Sung Seung 14-21, 23-25
Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championship: After making the perfect start to the campaign with a 5-0 win against Macau on Wednesday, India faced a tough challenge a day later against the Koreans. Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
