Daren Liew turned out to be the unlikely hero as Hyderabad Hunters got off to a bright start at home with a 2-1 win over North-Eastern Warriors in the Premier Badminton League at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium here on Wednesday.
With the match tied 1-1, thanks to a brilliant display by the Hunters pair of Ben Lane and Vladimir Ivanov in the Trump match for Warriors, World No. 42 Liew shocked World No. 18 Lee Cheuk Yiu 15-9, 15-10 in the final match to seal the contest for Hunters.
Liew’s precision while picking the corners, and combining big smashes with some solid netplay, settled the issue in his favour.
Sindhu disappoints
Earlier, P.V. Sindhu, playing for the first time as a World champion in front of her home crowd, disappointed against Michelle Li who outsmarted the Indian 15-8, 15-9.
Michelle raced to an 8-2 lead in the first game with a fine blend of smashes and delicate net dribbles even as Sindhu committed quite a few unforced errors.
In the second, Sindhu started off with her trademark smash and a couple of stunning cross-court smashes to lead 5-3, but soon saw the opponent fight back, scoring eight points in-a-row to snatch an 11-5 lead and eventually win. The evening began with the Hunters duo of Ivanov and N. Sikki Reddy getting the better of G. Krishna Prasad and Kim Ha Na 15-12, 8-15, 15-12.
Sourabh loses
The men’s singles, a Trump for Hunters, proved a disappointing one as World No. 28 Sourabh Verma lost a close encounter to World No. 38 Tanongsak Sansomboonsuk 15-14, 15-14. .
The results:
Hyderabad Hunters bt North-Eastern Warriors 2-1 (Vladimir Ivanov & N. Sikki Reddy bt G. Krishna Prasad & Kim Ha Na 15-12, 8-15, 15-12; Sourabh Varma (T) lost to Tanongsak Sansoomboonsuk 14-15, 14-15; P.V. Sindhu lost to Michelle Li 8-15, 9-15; Ben Lane & Vladimir Ivanov bt Bodhi Isara & Lee Yong Dae (T) 15-7, 15-10; Daren Liew bt Lee Cheuk Yiu 15-9, 15-10).
