Aparna Balan and Prajakta Sawant of IOCL defeated Ashwini Ponnappa and Arathi Sara Sunil of ONGC 27-25, 21-15 in a thrilling women’s doubles final in the 35th PSPB Inter-Unit badminton tournament on Thursday.
After winning a keenly fought first game, Aparna and Prajakta raced to an early lead due to a few unforced errors from the ONGC pair before sealing the game and the match.
In the men’s semifinal, national champion Saurabh Verma of ONGC showed the door to former international Chetan Anand with a convincing 21-10, 21-18 victory. He will be playing K Srikanth of IOCL in the finals on Friday. Srikanth advanced after his opponent HS Prannoy retired hurt due to an injury.
In the women’s singles semifinals, Arundhati Panthawane of ONGC beat team-mate Riya Pillai 21-17, 21-14 to set up a final clash with PC Thulasi, also from ONGC. Thulasi beat a spirited Tanvi Lad of IOCL 21-17, 21-14.
Deccan Herald is on WhatsApp Channels| Join now for Breaking News & Editor's Picks