76th Senior National Badminton Championships: Sourabh Varma ousts H.S. Prannoy in semi-final clash
India’s talented player Sourabh Varma has penetrated into Men’s Singles final after ousting his lower ranked compatriot H.S. Prannoy in semi-final clash of the 76th Senior National Badminton Champions 2012, in India, on Tuesday, January 24.
The world Number 48 Sourabh, who is also top seed in the Men’s Singles draw of the tournament, had to struggle hard to win the title match in three games against his spirited lower ranked opponent.
The top seed remained lucky in winning this contest as his rival put up superb show of top quality game but unfortunately lost the contest with a tight margin.
In the opening game, both team-mates played remarkable badminton while remaining close in the opening half.
Sourabh was dominating the game at net while Prannoy was impressive from the rear-court area. Until the one-minute break both talented players remained close on points table.
After the break, both continued playing aggressive game and reached at the concluding phase of first game without creating gap.
The score was 21-21 when the higher ranked Sourabh played quivering badminton and lost the game with a close score of 21-23.
In the following game, both men again locked horns and played at their maximum speed. They continued pushing each other in all corners of the court and remained equal until 60-second interval.
After the break, they kept the tempo at highest level and progressed closely until the score entered reached at the ending phase of second game. Sourabh controlled the pace of rallies at this stage and won the set with a tight 22-20 score on the board.
In the final game, Prannoy became a little slow which helped Sourabh to take over the control of rallies. He managed to dominate the pace and remained ahead of his rival by playing positive badminton.
In the concluding phase of deciding game, Sourabh managed a comfortable lead over his compatriot and won the fight with a convincing margin of 21-16.
The final score of this 65-minute semi-final clash was 21-23, 22-20 and 21-16.
In the final contest, Sourabh will take on B. Sai Praneeth who defeated Anand Pawar in the second semi-final of the tournament.
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