Indian Mixed Doubles teams into pre quarter-finals of Badminton Asia Championships
India had a great start as two of its Mixed Doubles teams registered their presence in Badminton Asia Championships by surging into pre quarter-finals of the event on April 18, 2012.
The premium couple of Jwala Gutta-V. Diju started the ball rolling by beating Indonesian duo Riky Widianto-Puspita Richi Dili. Then the second team Akshay Dewalkar-Pradnya Gadre followed the successful trail and thrashed Ki Jung Kim-Kyung Eun Jung from Korea.
Both teams eased into the second round where Jwala-Diju will face Sa Rang Kim-Hye In Choi of Korea while the duo of Akshay and Pradnya will test their chemistry against Wai Hong-Hoi Wah of Hong Kong.
Earlier in their first match, World Number 16 duo Jwala Gutta-V. Diju outclassed their opponent in just two games by registering 21-16 and 21-18 score on board.
The Indonesians were no comparison to the Indians and surrendered after a futile exercise of 29 minutes.
In opening game, Jwala and Diju were completely on song as they raced towards finishing point without any trouble. They established a notable lead of 7-1 in the start which remained invincible until the last moment.
Their challengers Riky-Puspita created some trouble by scoring six consecutive points in the end but it was not enough to avoid first set loss with final figure of 21-16.
The following game kept swinging between two contenders but Indian couple managed to strike the right balance and won the match with tight yet decisive 21-18 score in second set.
Later, the other Indian campaigners Akshay Dewalkar and Pradnya Gadre doubled the joy by emerging as Champions in an exhausting three-set tussle against Korean duo Ki Jung Kim-Kyung Eun Jung.
In their opening match of the event, the Mixed Doubles partners Akshay-Pradnya forged a fruitful chemistry and edged their seasoned rivals with a 2-1 match score.
They had a sluggish start as they remained far behind their opponents in opening set until 10-14 score position but they added five consecutive points in their total which helped them to win first match point with a decisive 21-16 score.
However, second set turned a flat contest in Korea’s favour as the Indians surrendered after reading 13-21 score on the board.
This 1-1 match score position locked both teams in a tight race and they stretched hard to leave their opponents behind but the Indian couple clinched three consecutive points after 18-18 total and sealed the victory with 21-18 score.
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