Mithun Manjunath tames Likith Gowda in semi-finals of Karnataka State Ranking Badminton Tournament
The young but talented shuttler Mithun Manjunath stamped Likith Gowda in the semi-final round and surged into the finals of the Belgaum 3 Star Karnataka State Ranking Badminton Tournament on September 4, 2012.
Both Boy’s Singles contenders remained head-to-head for 26 minutes before ending this encounter with final result of 21-9 and 21-16.
Mithun, who was underdog earlier in this event, alarmed all the contestants by sealing a straight-set victory.
He laid the foundation of his supremacy by clinching the very first match point on merit and then proved himself superior by claiming the second set.
Though, the opposing shuttler made every effort to avoid this shameful exit but he could not hit the mark and crashed out of the tournament.
The opening game set the overall tempo as Mithun launched a brisk attack and pushed his rival on the back-foot.
He did not lose focus at any stage of the game and piled up a mountainous total of 11 before the announcement of mid-game break.
Both shuttlers were poles apart in terms of performance in the latter part of the game as Likith hardly put any resistance and allowed his opponent to pocket the opening match with great ease.
Mithun relished full benefits of his challenger’s blunders and established an unassailable lead in the third quarter of the set.
He carried this rhythm in to the final stage and maintained a twelve-point advantage until an overwhelming figure of 21-9.
However, it was not an easy ride to victory for him in the second set of the match as Likith showed some elevated craft in the pressure situation.
In the first half of the game, both contenders displayed tremendous badminton skills and made the crowd gasp with their mesmerising performance.
They stood toe-to-toe in preliminary rallies but then Mithun tipped the scale in his favour with some uninterrupted points.
He established a comfortable lead and finished the first half with a respectable score position of 11.
He did not give Likith even a single counter-attack opportunity in later part of the game and swept the table with 21-16 margin.
Now he will be locking horns with Rohit Karnatak in title match of this tournament.
Tags: