Lucknow: Chitkara University blanked out Gujarat University 3-0 and earned a meeting with Chandigarh University in the Men’s Team final of the Khelo India University Games 2022 quarterfinals at the BBD Badminton Hall today.
Chandigarh defeated the University of Madras 3-1, with Divyansh Srivastava winning the two singles, and Jash Amit Modi provided solidity to his side. Khelendrajit Yengkhom was their third player and went down to K. Karthikeyan. But in the end, it did not make any difference to their chances.
For Chitkara, Yashansh Malik, Jeet Chandra, and Wesley Do Rosario did the trick and stamped their authority in the semi-final against Gujarat varsity.
In their first semi-final, SRM University women toyed with Chitkara and thumped them 3-0 to enter the final, with V. Kowshika, Kavyashree Baskar and S. Sharmitha winning their matches. Kowshika faced resistance from Lakshita Narang before subduing her 3-2. Kavyashree conceded a game before taking a firm grip in the second tie, and Sharmitha completed the formality against Manpreet Kaur.
Adams struggled past the University of Calcutta 3-1 and moved into the final. For Adamas, Munmun Kundu salvaged the situation by winning two of her singles, but the national-level player was off-colour today. She dropped two games against Sammridhi Bainik in the first singles and another in the reverse singles to Anushka Basak, the only player to post a win against Ananaya Santra of Adamas.
Anannya Basak’s heroics did the trick for Chitkara University as their girls defeated Panjab University, Chandigarh, 3-2, in a thriller to enter the semi-final. The Chandigarh outfit depended on Anjalai Rohillia’s prowess as a defensive player. Yet, she could not stop a free-flowing Anannya and his attacking game paid off in their reverse singles that eventually became crucial in the final analysis.
Lakishta Narang dropped a game in the decider before making amends for her opening tie’s loss to pull it off against Tanushree Das Gupta and weather the storm. In the fourth tie, Anjali netted too much, giving the advantage to Anannya in the last two extended games. The Chitkara University girl won the fourth game on the third game point to level the score. She did it again in the decider to claim the match point.
Munmun Kundu played her role to perfection, winning both her singles to help Adamas University, Kolkata, beat the University of Madras 3-2 and enter the semi-final. The Madras University relied on Nithyashree Mani, an international player, but she could not put it across Munmun. Dipanwita Basu beat Maria Ancy John 3-2 in the decisive fifth tie to put Adamas in the driver’s seat.
SRM University beat Chandigarh University 3-1, but Delhi University went down 2-3 to the University of Calcutta as Vanshika Bhargava and Tisha Kohli gave a good start. But Trisha Gogoi’s loss in the third rubber proved costly for the squad from Delhi.
In the Men’s quarterfinals, Chitkara, Gujarat, Madras and Chandigarh varsities went through the motions and blanked out their respective opponents, except the SAGE University taking a game off Gujarat University. The advantage of national-level players representing these institutions has held them in good states, enabling them to post easy wins and storm into the semi-finals.
Results:
Women: Semi-finals: SRM University bt Chitkara University 3-2 (V. Kowshika bt Lakshita Narang 11-5, 11-6, 4-11, 7-11, 11-5; Kavyashree Baskar bt Anannya Bask 11-9, 11-6, 10-12, 11-1; S. Sharmitha bt Manpreet Kaur 11-1, 11-1, 11-1); Adamas University bt University of Calcutta 3-1 (Ananaya Santra lost to Anushka Basak 8-11, 11-8, 4-11, 8-11; Munmun Kundu bt Sammridhi Bainik 9-11,13-11, 9-11, 11-7, 13-11; Dipanwita Basu bt Koushiki Dasgupta 11-8, 11-4, 10-12, 8-11, 11-7; Munmun Kundu bt Anushka Basak 8-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-7).
Quarterfinals: Chitkara University bt Panjab University 3-2; SRM University bt Chandigarh University 3-1; Adamas University bt University of Madras 3-2; University of Calcutta bt Delhi University 3-2.
Men: Semi-finals: Chitkara University bt Gujarat University 3-0 (Yashansh Malik bt Abhilash Raval 11-7, 11-5, 11-6; Jeet Chandra bt Chitrax Bhatt 11-8, 11-7, 16-14; Wesley Do Rosario bt Akshit Savia 9-11, 11-7, 11-5, 11-8); Chandigarh University bt University of Madras 3-1 (Divyansh Srivastava bt Varun Ganesh 11-9, 11-8, 11-6; Jash Modi bt S. Karthikeyan 11-3, 11-5, 11-4; K. Yengkhom lost to K. Karthikeyan 7-11, 8-11, 13-11, 6-11; Divyan Srivastava bt S. Karthikeyan 8-11, 11-7, 6-11, 11-4, 11-7).
Quarterfinals: Chitkara University bt University of Mumbai 3-0; Gujarat University bt SAGE University 3-1; University of Madras bt LN Mithila University 3-0; Chandigarh University bt SRM University 3-0.
