The Indian challenge at the $120,000 India Open GP Gold stuttered on Thursday, with only Saina Nehwal in the singles managing to enter the quarterfinals.
The Indian challenge at the $120,000 India Open GP Gold stuttered on Thursday, with only Saina Nehwal in the singles managing to enter the quarterfinals. All the men’s singles contenders — national champion Arvind Bhat, Anand Pawar and Anup Sridhar — fell in the third round, but only Sridhar would feel bitter about his performance.
Anup was on course for a straight-sets win against the left-handed Malaysian Tan Chun Seang, but let the lead slip with an injudicious choice of defensive strokes that helped his opponent suddenly assume menacing proportions. Once the Malaysian found his rhythm Anup found it hard to stop him.
Arvind Bhat has been in fine touch this season, and was expected to trouble, if not upset, the world No.7 Taufik Hidayat. But the Indonesian left the crowd breathless with his mastery, dismantling the Indian bit by bit until Bhat seemed out of his league. Taufik demonstrated the perfect way to play a tall player like Bhat, disallowing the Indian the depth to get his smashes, and taking away his rhythm with a range of short jabs. Arvind looked for the most part like a musician with an instrument that was out of tune, and nobody could grudge the Indonesian his place in the quarters, for it was a rich display of badminton.
Anand Pawar too had no answers to China’s Chen Long, who had upset world No.1 Lee Chong Wei in the first round. Anand was fast and powerful, but the Chinese was faster still, nailing his smashes from improbable positions and displaying a wicked backhand that caught Pawar out of step.
Meanwhile, Saina Nehwal entered the quarterfinals with a commanding 21-8 21-8 victory over Hong Kong’s Chan Hung Yung, and will next play Malaysia’s Julia Wong. Top seed Pi Hongyan survived a Chinese challenge to make the quarters; while sixth seed Yu Hirayama of Japan was made to sweat by young Indian PC Thulasi.
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