India beat Singapore in a Group D thriller
India's national champion Sameer Verma rallied India to a 4-1 win over a gritty Singapore in their first Group D match in the Robot Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships in Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday.
For Singapore the defeat was their second in the group and they are out of contention. Only the top two teams in each group advance to the knockout stage. India will now face South Korea to decide the group champions and runners-up. The Koreans beat Singapore 5-0 in their first match on Tuesday.
Singapore made a strong start to their match against India when Terry Hee Yong Kai-Tan Wei Han upset newly crowned Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold champions Pranaav Jerry Chopra-N. Sikki Reddy in the mixed doubles in straight sets 23-21, 21-17 in a 39 minute encounter at the Nguyen Du Cultural Sports Club.
However, national champion and men's singles winner in the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold led India's fightback when he tamed Loh Kean Yew 21-9, 21-16 in 34 minutes to level the score at 1-1.
Olympians Manu Attri-B. Sumeeth Reddy put India in the driving seat with a 21-12, 21-17 win over Singapore's naturalized Indonesian pair Danny Bawa Chrisnanta-Hendra Wijaya for a 2-1 lead.
Rookie Rituparna Das shattered any hopes of Singapore staying alive when she pulled off a stunning 23-21, 21-18 win over China-born Xiaoyu Liang in a 39 minute for a 3-1 lead.
In the final match of the day - the women's doubles - saw India's new pair Ashwinin Ponnappa-N. Sikki Reddy clinch a thrilling come from behind 19-21, 21-17, 21-17 win over Ong Ren-Ne-Crystal Wong Jia Ying.
Earlier in a Group C match Thailand romped home to an easy 5-0 win over the Philippines while Japan crushed hosts Vietnam by a similar scoreline in the same group
RESULTS (Wed Feb 15)
GROUP C
JAPAN 5 VIETNAM 0
(Japan first)
MS: Kazumasa Sakai beat Phm Cao Cuong 21-11, 21-3
WS: Sayaka Sato beat Nguyen Thuy Linh 21-16, 21-13
MD: Endo Hiroyuki-Yuta Watanabe beat Do Tuan Duc-Pha Hong Nam 21-8, 21-10
WD: Shiho Tanaka-Koharu Yonemoto beat beat Nguyen Thi Sen-Vu Thi Trang 21-5, 21-3
XD: Kanta Kazuno-Ayane Kurihara beat Do Tuan Duc-Le Thu Huyen 21-11, 21-18
THAILAND 5 PHILIPPINES 0
(Thailand first)
MS: Adulrach Namkul beat Ros Leonard Pedrosa 21-7, 21-14
WS: Nitchaon Jindapol beat Sarah Joy Barredo 21-5, 21-13
MD: Kittinupong Kedren-Dechapol Puavaranukrh beat Carlos Antonie Cayanan-Philip Joper Escueta 21-14, 21-11
WD: Puttita Supajirakul-Sapsire Taerattanachai beat Alyssa Yasbel Loenardo-Thea Marie Pomar 21-9, 21-0
GROUP D
INDIA 4 SINGAPORE 1
(India first)
MS: Sameer Verma beat Loh Kean Yew 21-9, 21-16
WS: Rituparna Das beat Xiaoyu Liang 23-21, 21-18
MD: Manu Attri-B. Sumeeth Reddy beat Danny Bawa Chrisnanta-Hendra Wijaya 21-12, 21-17
WD: Ashwini Ponnappa-N. Sikki Reddy beat Ong Re-Ne-Crystal Wong Jia Ying 19-21, 21-17, 21-17
XD: Pranaav Jerry Chopra-N. Sikki Reddy lost to Terry Hee Yong Kai-Tan Wei Han 21-23, 17-21
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