76th Senior National Badminton Championships: Arun Vishnu–Balan Aparna emerge as national champions
India’s Arun Vishnu and Balan Aparna have emerged as Mixed Doubles national champions after beating Pranav Chopra and Prajakta Sawant in title match of the 76th Senior National Badminton Championships 2012, in Bangalore, on Wednesday, January 25.
Arun and Balan, who were the top seeds in the national championships, proved their worth against the second seeded couple of Pranav and Prajakta and won the thrilling fight that took three games of attacking badminton.
The top seeds consumed 58 minutes in the court to chuck out their lower ranked compatriots and made their mark in the history of India’s National Championships.
It was one of the best matches of the final day as both sides locked horns in a thrilling way and kept the home fans engaged throughout the battle.
Arun and Balan started to play fast badminton from the starting points but failed to get decent lead as their lower ranked rivals also played with aggression. Until the break in opening set, the score was quite close.
However, after the break, Arun and Balan started to create gap by playing with precision. They did not execute negative strokes and managed to take advantage in the final match by winning the opening set with a margin of 21-16.
In the second game, both couples remained equal in first half as they matched the pace of rallies. But Pranav and Prajakta played better badminton in the second half as they pushed their higher ranked compatriots on the back foot. Arun and Balan lost the game with a decent score of 17-21.
In the deciding game, both sides kept the pace of rallies at maximum level. They progressed in the game without managing a reasonable gap until the concluding phase.
Arun and Balan changed their plan at this stage and managed to put pressure on their rivals. They dominated the rallies at net and also played flawless badminton from the rear-court area.
The positive play of Arun and Balan helped them to win the final game with a close margin of 21-19. They won the final contest in 58 minutes with a 21-16, 17-21 and 21-19 score on the board.
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