Pranav Chopra, Prajakta Sawant bow out of India Open 2012 – Badminton Update
Mixed Doubles team Pranav Chopra-Prajakta Sawant of India bid adieu to Yonex Sunrise India Open as they surrendered against Noriyasu Hirata-Miyuki Maeda in first round match on April 25, 2012.
The partnership of Pranav and Prajakta could not live up to its billing and they bow down after a futile exercise of 57 minutes as the scoreboard was flashing final figures of 16-21, 21-19 and 21-11.
In opening match of the event, the Indian pair took off in the right manner but could not enjoy a smooth flight as their opponents kept them grounded in the later part of the match.
National number three, Pranav-Prajakta stayed on the front foot in first set of the match as they played attacking badminton throughout the game.
They did not allow their challengers to catch them after 7-7 and gained a four point advantage before the mid-game break was announced.
After interval, the home town favourites kept their competitors at lower end with some uninterrupted rallies and established a comfortable lead with 16-8 total.
Mixed Doubles experts Pranav and Prajakta bagged first match point with a notable margin of 21-16.
However, the Japanese campaigners turned the tables in following game and stormed back into the match with a gutsy performance in second set.
World Number 45 pair Noriyasu Hirata-Miyuki Maeda showed their intentions with some powerful rallies in first half of the set and managed to lead 10-6.
There was strong resilience from Indians in later part of the game as they caught their rivals at 16-16 and remained close until 19-19 score position.
At this breath-taking stage Noriyasu Hirata-Miyuki Maeda earned back-to-back game points and swept the board with 21-19.
The audience, who was there to support the natives, was expecting a lot of fireworks in the decider as both teams were locked in survival of the fittest war but Indian team disappointed the home crowd by proving itself a sitting duck in third set.
Both teams stayed close until 8-8 but the Japanese blew away their rivals in later stages and sealed the victory with a notable margin of 21-11.
After this win, Noriyasu Hirata-Miyuki Maeda earned a spot in pre quarter-finals where the Malaysian couple Chan Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying awaits them.
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