BADMINTON
Badminton Asia Junior Mixed Team Championships: India goes down fighting by six points to Japan
India’s junior badminton team put up a strong fight before going down 110-104 to former champion Japan in the quarterfinals of the Badminton Asia Junior Mixed Team Championships in Solo, Indonesia.
In a closely contested tie under the relay scoring system, India came out strong after a narrow 11-9 loss in the opening match. The boys’ doubles duo of Bhargav Ram Arigela and Viswa Tej Gobburu got India on the board, followed by a composed win from the girls’ pair of Vennala Kalagotla and Reshika Uthayasooriyan to put India ahead 33-26. Reshika then combined with Bhavya Chhabra to maintain the lead at 44-35, and Rounak Chouhan extended the cushion with another solid performance.
India led for a major part of the tie, but Japan, the 2023 champion, pulled ahead in the final stretch, winning the last five matches in a row.
Despite the narrow exit, India had a strong tournament. It topped Group D with wins over Hong Kong China, the United Arab Emirates, and Sri Lanka, showing depth and balance across singles and doubles. The Bhargav-Viswa Tej and Reshika-Vennala pairings were consistently impressive, while C Lalramsanga also stood out in his doubles outings, paired up with Bhavya for men’s doubles and Taarini Suri for the mixed doubles. In singles, Rounak upset world junior No. 5 Lam Ka To, and Rujula Ramu registered wins over two top-20 players.
The focus now shifts to the individual championships starting July 23.
-Team Sportstar