Bengaluru Raptors kicked off its home campaign in style, cruising past Mumbai Rockets 5-(-1) in the Premier Badminton League (PBL) here on Tuesday. The victory took Bengaluru one step closer to gaining a semifinal berth.
It was the marquee men’s singles clash between K. Srikanth (World No. 8) and Anders Antonsen (World No. 18) which stood out as the highlight. Neither player was willing to concede an inch, but it was Bengaluru’s Srikanth who came out on top 15-14, 15-14.
The rallies were exciting, with smashes and drops flowing from both ends of the court.
The net exchanges, in particular, brought the spectators to their feet. Srikanth, who showed unbelievable reflexes to make a few stunning retrieves, was at his best close to the net.
The Indian managed to claw his way back from being 13-14 down in the first game. After making it 14-14, Srikanth took the game in style, when he brought Antonsen forward with a drop, before sending him scurrying helplessly back with a powerful smash.
Earlier, Vu Thi Thrang outplayed P. Shreyanshi 15-4, 11-15, 15-7 in the women’s singles rubber. Vu, Vietnam’s top-ranked player, gave Bengaluru a 2-0 lead by clinching her trump match.
The two-time World Championship gold medal winning pair of Mohammed Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan then made it 3-0 with a 15-11, 15-11 win over Jung Kim-Dae Lee. In a rubber marked by frenetic back and forth action, Indonesia’s Ahsan and Setiawan prevailed fairly comfortably over their South Korean opponents in the end.
With the fate of the tie already decided, Mumbai’s trump match was reduced to a dead rubber. There was more misery in store for Mumbai, as Sai Praneeth edged out Sameer Verma 12-15, 15-5, 15-13. Praneeth was down 1-6 in the deciding game, but mounted a stirring comeback to stun his rival.
The results: Bengaluru Raptors bt Mumbai Rockets (Vu Thi Thrang (T) bt P. Shreyanshi 15-4, 11-15, 15-7; Mohammed Ahsan & Hendra Setiawan bt Jung Kim & Dae Lee 15-11, 15-11; K. Srikanth bt Anders Antonsen 15-14, 15-14; Sai Praneeth bt Sameer Verma (T) 12-15, 15-5, 15-13).
