Junior National Badminton Championship: Sharon Raphel and Pranav S. enter into quarter-final
India’s Sharon Raphel and Pranav S. powered their way into Boy’s Doubles U19 quarter-final after ousting Rajat Joon and Neeraj Vashisth in the round-of-16 at 36th Junior National Badminton Championship 2012 in Jaipur, India, on Friday, February 10.
Sharon and Pranav, who were number five seeds in the Boy’s Doubles draw of the tournament, had to employ all of their skills against the un-seeded Rajat and Neeraj as they managed to win this thrilling rubber-set match in 35 minutes.
In the first game, Rajat and Neeraj delivered stunning performance as they took a wonderful lead by putting up superb show of fast badminton.
They did not show any respect to their higher ranked opponents and set up a comfortable lead until the one-minute break.
After the interval Sharon and Pranav tried to tackle the speed of their rivals but failed to stop them from progressing in the opening set. They also made many unforced errors which caused them the loss of the opening game with a one-sided score of 13-21.
Stung by the loss of opening set, the higher ranked Sharon and Pranav powered their way back into the match by playing to their maximum potential in the second game and took a wonderful lead until the one-minute break.
After the interval, Sharon and Pranav remained consistent in their positive play and maintained pressure on their lower ranked challengers. They played with precision throughout the second set and bagged it with a convincing 21-12 score on the board.
In the decider, both pairs showed their aggression and played to their maximum speed. The score progressed closely as both sides failed to take a comfortable lead until the 60-second interval.
After the break, Sharon and Pranav played with variations and started to control the pace of rallies. They remained positive in the whole set and continued their supremacy in the game.
On the other hand, Rajat and Neeraj could not live up to expectations in the concluding part of second game as they lost their control over the pace of rallies.
However, Sharon and Pranav were composed in the court and they finished the set with a margin of 21-15.
Sharon and Pranav won this three-set fight in 35 minutes with a 13-21, 21-12 and 21-15 score on the board.
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