Austrian International Challenge 2012: K.T. Rupesh Kumar and Sanave Thomas bag Men’s Doubles title
India’s top shuttlers K.T. Rupesh Kumar and Sanave Thomas stamped their supremacy in the arena as they bagged Men’s Doubles title after beating Japan’s Hiroyuki Saeki and Ryota Taohata in the title match of Austrian International Challenge 2012 in Austria,
on Saturday, February 25.
The World Number 27 Rupesh and Sanave, who were the top seeds in Men’s Doubles draw of the event, emerged as the winners against their un-seeded Japanese opponents in an interesting and close fight.
The Indians remained lucky in winning the final match in straight games with a close margin by working hard for 39 minutes in the court.
Rupesh and Sanave, who were looking for a good flow for the last few months, finally found it as they remained in smashing form in all matches of the championship.
It was one of the best fights of final day as both sides put up superb show of attacking and composed badminton and entertained the crowd with their impressive skills. Until the break in the first set, both pairs remained close on the score board.
After the interval, Rupesh and Sanave tried to dominate the pace of rallies but failed as their Japanese opponents were also positive in the game.
The score progressed in the similar tight fashion and reached at the concluding phase.
At this crucial stage, Rupesh and Sanave worked well by accelerating their speed at net and managed to take the first set with a close 23-21 score on the board.
In the second set, the Japanese shuttlers showed their attacking play in the starting rallies but failed to create pressure on their higher ranked Indian rivals, who were also impressive in the court. The score again remained close until the break.
After the interval, Rupesh and Sanave started to play different game as they did not let their spirited opponents to dominate the pace of rallies. However, the Japanese duo also remained close until the concluding points.
Rupesh and Sanave again proved their elevated skills at this breath-taking stage and remained successful in scoring the ending points. They took the second set with a 22-20 score on the board.
This Men’s Doubles final encounter finished in straight games with a score of 23-21 and 22-20.
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