Rising Indian shuttler H S Prannoy stunned compatriot Parupalli Kashyap in the hosts’ Trump match as Mumbai Rockets trounced Hyderabad Hunters 4-1 in their Premier Badminton League (PBL) clash at the Gachibowli indoor stadium in Hyderabad on Monday.
Gurusaidutt defeated Hyderabad’s upcoming shuttler Siril Varma, runner-up in the world junior championship, 15-12 15-4 in a Men’s Singles match to give two points to his side in their Trump match.
However, it was Prannoy’s 15-11, 15-13 victory against Kashyap in the other Men’s Singles — the Trump match of Hyderabad — which dashed Hyderabad’s chances in the five-match tie. After losing in the Trump match, Hyderabad lost one point, while Mumbai gained one.
Kashyap, who has not been at his best in the PBL after recovering from an injury, suffered yet another disappointment against Mumbai’s Prannoy.
After the surprise win, Prannoy said: “This was a very important match for us as we had already lost the first two matches and I am happy to have opened our team’s account. This was a Trump match for them but we managed to snatch a victory. Now hopefully our team can concentrate and win the rest of the matches.”
The Mixed Doubles match between Jwala Gutta-Markis Kido of Hyderabad and Mumbai’s Kamilla Juhl-Vladimir Ivanov also turned out to be a disappointment for the host as the Mumbai side did not let their rivals take any advantage.
The Denkark-Russian combo beat the Indian-Indonesian pair 15-8 15-8 in the match.
Hyderabad gained two points after winning the Women’s Singles and Men’s Doubles matches, but the loss in the Trump match quashed their hopes.
The Women’s Singles between Supanida K of Hyderabad and Mumbai’s Liu Zi Die was a close contest with both shuttlers leaving no stones unturned to take advantage.
After losing in the first match 13-15, Supanida, a budding shuttler from Thailand, fought back to win the remaining two games 15-14 and 15-14.
Hyderabad’s Men’s Doubles pair of Carsten Mogensen-Markis Kido too put up an impressive show in their match against Chayut T-Vladimir Ivanov of Mumbai, notching up a 15-7, 15-14 win over the Mumbai combo.
