Akashraj Murthy demolishes Lok Sainath K in semi-final contest of State Ranking Badminton Tournament
India’s Akashraj Murthy powers his way into Boy’s Singles U17 final after proving his worth against his higher ranked rival Lok Sainath K in semi-final contest at the Udupi 5 Star State Ranking Badminton Tournament in India, on Tuesday, July 10.
The un-seeded Akashraj, who crushed all shuttlers in his way to semi-final, continued his crushing run and outplayed Lok Sainath to land a title berth in an emphatic fashion.
The lower ranked Akashraj was just impressive on court as he showed a wonderful temperament on crucial stages in both games and won the match in a sensational fashion by a close margin on the score board.
On the other hand, the fifth seeded Lok Sainath played well in both games but he failed to control his nerves at the ending points and lost to his lower ranked challenger in straight sets in just 20 minutes.
The opening game was interesting when both boys played with impressive speed and pushed each other everywhere while taking the bird early.
The higher ranked Lok Sainath was impressive in his powerful pushes while Akashraj showed his class by playing beautiful net shots and deception at the net.
Until the break, the score remained tight as both boys were at the same level on court.
After the break, they continued putting up staggering show by keeping the pace high and reached at the ending stage when Akashraj took over the control by playing smart badminton in all areas and took the set by a margin of 21-18.
In the second game, Lok Sainath played better badminton as he showed aggression at the net area and also controlled the pace from rear court.
However, Akashraj also maintained his impressive rhythm and again both boys were close until the break.
After the interval, the tempo of the game remained at the maximum level as both boys did not drop their speed at any stage.
At the ending phase, it was Akashraj who again controlled the driving seat and took the set with a tight score of 21-19.
Akashraj managed to end up the contest in straight games with a decent difference of 21-18 and 21-19.
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