State U19 Badminton Selection Tournament: Nishika, Yashwi to clash for title
Mumbai, May 23
It was the end of the road for the top two seeds among the Girls U-19, who crashed out at different stages of the State U19 Badminton Selection Tournament, organised by GMBA and hosted by Willingdon SC.
While top seed Yutika Chavan of Pune went down in a tough quarter-final encounter against 7th seed Nishika Gokhe of Nagpur that could have gone either way, second seed Ridheema Sarpate of Nagpur lost to unseeded Yashwi Patel of Pune in straight games in the semis.
Nishika was the better player on the day, with enough energy and grit to rally from the loss of the first game and defeat Yutika 18-21, 21-19, 21-17. Nishika then got on to the court again after a couple of hours rest to defeat Mumbai Suburb's Ketaki Thite 22-20, 21-14 in the semi-finals. She will take on Yashwi for the title, who outplayed second seed Ridheema 21-18, 21-18 in the other semis.
There were no such hiccups in the Boys U-19 as the top two seeds played true to their ranking to set up a title clash. Top seed Arjun Aluguvelli of Mumbai Suburbs ended the fine run of Pune's Aayush Adey, winning a close encounter 24-22, 25-23, while second seed Rutva Sajwan of Nagpur had to dig deep to quell the challenge from Raigad's Tanay Mehandale 21-17, 9-21, 21-15.
Results
BS U19
Quarterfinals
Arjun Aluguvelli Mumbai Suburb (1) beat Avadhut Kadam Pune (5)- 22-20, 17-21, 21-14; Rutva Sajwan Nagpur (2) beat Eashwara Uppu Raigad - 21-14, 21-8; Tanay Mehendale Raigad (3) beat Ojas Joshi Pune (6) - 21-19, 21-13; Aayush Adey Pune(13) beat Harshit Mahimkar Greater Mumbai - 21-17, 23-21.
Semifinals
Arjun Aluguvelli Mumbai Suburb (1) beat Aayush Adey Pune (13) - 24-22, 25-23; Rutva Sajwan Nagpur (2) beat Tanay Mehendale Raigad (3) - 21-17, 9-21, 21-15.
GS U19
Quarterfinals
Nishika Gokhe Nagpur (7) beat Yutika Chavan Pune (1) - 18-21, 21-19, 21-17; Ridheema Sarpate Nagpur (2) beat Dhun Sanghvi Buldhana - 21-12, 21-13; Ketaki Thite Mumbai Suburb beat Sharayu Ranjane Pune - 21-13, 21-11; Yashwi Patel Pune beat Khyati Katre Pune - 19-21, 21-14, 21-12.
Semifinals
Nishika Gokhe Nagpur (7) beat Ketaki Thite, Mumbai Suburb - 22-20, 21-14; Yashwi Patel, Pune beat Ridheema Sarpate, Nagpur - 21-18, 21-18
BD U19
Quarterfinals
Arjun Birajdar/Aryan Birajdar Thane (1) beat Aditya Poojary /Prasanna Manna Sangli - 21-10, 21-16; Sarthak Nalawade Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar/Shreyas Maslekar Pune bt Avadhut Kadam/Ojas Joshi Pune (2) - 21-17, 22-20; Abheek Sharma/Swarit Satpute Pune (4) beat Sairaj Nayse Nagpur/Satya Chauhan, Mumbai Suburb - 14-21, 21-12, 21-11; Aayush Adey Pune/Tanay Mehendale Raigad beat Adarsh Panjwani Akola/Karan Sawale Buldhana - 21-12, 21-12.
Semifinals
Arjun Birajdar/Aryan Birajdar Thane (1) beat Abheek Sharma/Swarit Satpute Pune (4) - 21-12, 21-13; Aayush Adey Pune/Tanay Mehendale Raigad beat Sarthak Nalawade Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar/Shreyas Maslekar Pune - 15-21, 21-13, 21-15.
GD U19
Quarterfinals
Sara Salunke Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar/Thea Sheth Greater Mumbai beat Hita Agrawal/Sia Waydande Nashik (1) - 21-14, 18-21, 21-14; Pranjal Shinde Raigad/Yashwi Patel Pune (3) beat Navya Ranka/Shreya Chaudhari Pune - 21-11, 21-19; Sharayu Ranjane/Soyara Shelar Pune beat Dakshayni Patil Kolhapur/Ketaki Thite Mumbai Suburb - 21-9, 21-11; Rutika Kamble Kolhapur/Sharvari Survase Pune bt Prisha Shah Palghar/Saisha Naik Mumbai Suburb - 21-19, 21-14;
Semifinals
Pranjal Shinde Raigad/Yashwi Patel, Pune (3) beat Sara Salunke Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar/Thea Sheth Greater Mumbai - 21-10, 21-17; Sharayu Ranjane/Soyara Shelar Pune beat Rutika Kamble Kolhapur/Sharvari Survase Pune - 21-8, 21-12.
XD U19
Quarterfinals
Sayaji Shelar/Soyara Shelar Pune beat Prasanna Manna Sangli/Anannya Shinde Washim - 21-17, 23-21; Apurv Davadate Thane/Safa Shaikh Pune beat Ayan Kulkarni Mumbai Suburb/Mrunal Potdar Thane (4) - 21-10, 21-10; Ojas Joshi Pune/Tanvi Gharpure Thane beat Swarit Satpute Pune/Rutika Kamble Kolhapur - 21-13, 21-8; Sanidhya Ekade Thane/Yutika Chavan Pune (2) beat Sarthak Nalawade Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar/Ditisha Somkuwar Nagpur - 21-14, 20-22, 21-18.
Semifinals
Sanidhya Ekade Thane/Yutika Chavan Pune (2) beat Ojas Joshi Pune/Tanvi Gharpure Thane - 12-21, 21-17, 21-17; Sayaji Shelar/Soyara Shelar Pune beat Apurv Davadate Thane/Safa Shaikh Pune - 21-12, 21-6.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Good to see grassroots badminton thriving in Maharashtra. These state tournaments are so important for identifying talent. Girls U-19 category is super competitive this year.
But I wish more media coverage was given to junior badminton - these kids train so hard and get little recognition compared to cricket. Hope the winners go on to represent India one day.
Impressive depth in boys U-19 as well. Arjun Aluguvelli and Rutva Sajwan both had to fight hard to reach the final. The quarterfinal between Arjun and Avadhut Kadam going to three games shows the competition level.
Also, Aayush Adey (13th seed) reaching semis by beating higher seeds - that's the beauty of knockout tournaments! Underdogs always bring the drama. 👏
Nice to see badminton development beyond just the big cities. Players from Nagpur, Pune, Raigad, Thane all in the mix. This is how we build a national pipeline.
One thing though - the scheduling seems tough for players. Nishika had to play quarters and semis on the same day with just two hours break? That's brutal for U-19 kids. Hope the organizers can space things out better next time.
Big congratulations to all the young players! 🎉 The results show how competitive Mumbai Suburb and Pune are in badminton.
Special shout-out to the unseeded Yashwi Patel from Pune - reaching the final after beating the second seed is phenomenal. These are the stories that inspire other young athletes.
Wishing both finalists all the best for the title clash! Our future shuttle stars in the making. 🇮🇳
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