Denmark Open: Treesa-Gayatri reach quarters, Srikkanth’s valiant fight in vain
Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand continued their impressive run at the Denmark Open and booked their place in the women’s doubles quarter-finals with a straight-sets victory over Indonesia’s Rachel Allessya and Rose Febi Setianingrum on Thursday.
DENMARK OPEN: FULL NEWS
The Indian duo, who won bronze at the World Championships in New Delhi in August, overcame the fifth-seeded Indonesian pair in 45 minutes 21-16, 21-17 to move into the last eight. Treesa and Gayatri will now await the winner of the fight between Hong Kong’s Yeung Nga Ting and Yeung Pui Lam and the second Malaysian duo of Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan.
It was a mixed day for the Indian contingent as Ashmita Chaliha crashed out of the women’s singles competition. In the pre-quarterfinals, she lost to Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi 18-21, 10-21.
SRIKANTH PUSHES LANIER ALL THE WAY
Kidambi Srikanth produced flashes of the form that once made him one of the leading names in world badminton but could not sustain the challenge against reigning world champion Alex Lanier, who lost in three games in the men’s singles pre-quarterfinals.
The 33-year-old Indian, who made a remarkable breakthrough in 2017 by winning four titles, relied on his fine touch and sharp net play in his opening match against the 21-year-old Frenchman. However, Lanier recovered to record an 11-21, 21-15, 21-15 victory in 66 minutes.
Srikanth dictated the first exchanges with his ability to shuttle close to the net. His deceptive spinning shots and precise angled returns repeatedly caught Lanier off guard, allowing the Indian to build a commanding 11-5 advantage at the interval before the first game was over.
The game took a different turn after a midgame timeout, when Lanier coach Kestutis Navickas advised him to reduce his reliance on the backcourt and build rallies with backcourt attacks.
The adjustment helped the Frenchman bring speed and attacking power to the game and gradually shift the tempo in his favour.
Srikanth refused to give up without a fight and opened up a 5-2 lead in the deciding game before taking a narrow 11-9 advantage into the break. However, Lanier turned up the intensity in the closing stages, using his movement and defensive resilience to nullify the Indians’ offensive efforts and seal a quarterfinal berth.
– The end