Top seed Priyanshu Rajawat was made to sweat by compatriot Arya Bhivpathki in the men’s singles second round while the young Tanvi Sharma packed off seventh seed Hemanth asked to advance to the women’s singles pre-quarters at the Guwahati Masters 2024 badminton tournament on Wednesday.
Rajawat fought back from a 16-11 deficit and then saved a game point in the opening game to beat Bhivpathki 22-20, 21-14 in 35 minutes, while Tanvi defeated Tanya 21-18, 21-14 to advance in the Super 100 badminton event.
In the paired event, mixed doubles top seeds Satish Kumar Karunakaran and Adya Variyath along with fifth seeds Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto stayed on course for a possible showdown in the quarter-finals.
Satish-Adya, the top seeds, defeated Nithin HV and Anagha Pai 21-14, 21-10 while Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto got the better of the People’s Republic of China’s Liao Pin Yi and Huang Ke Xin 22-20, 21-19.
This is the second edition of the Guwahati Masters badminton tournament, organised jointly by the Badminton Association of India and Assam Badminton Association with the view of providing much needed exposure to young Indian shuttlers.
And just like Tanvi, up and coming youngster Shriyanshi Valishetty also grabbed the opportunity to impress with a 21-19, 21-14 win over Unnati Hooda.
Local hope Isharani Baruah, seeded eight, played her heart out against India’s Asian Championship star player Anmol Kharb but ended up on the wrong side of the 21-10, 18-21, 21-18 score line.
In the day’s other matches, Tasnim Mir squandered two match points and then saved two herself before defeating fellow Indian badminton player Ira Sharma 21-13, 19-21, 24-22 in just under an hour.
Tasnim Mir will now face defending champion Lalinrat Chaiwan of Thailand, who comfortably beat Tanishq MP 21-5, 21-7.
