Hyderabad: India’s impressive run the Badminton Asia Team Championships continued as the hosts booked a semifinal berth with a hard fought 3-2 win over former champions Malaysia here on Friday.
H S Prannoy won the deciding singles after India and Malaysia were locked 2-2 in the five-match quarterfinals tie at the Gachibowli indoor stadium here.
Prannoy beat Teck Zhi Soo 21-12, 22-20 in a tense match to put India in the semifinals which will be played on Saturday.
Prannoy had the last laugh, narrowly winning the second game 22-20, which set off celebrations in the Indian camp.
Earlier, India’s captain Kidambi Srikanth, who remained unbeaten in the group matches, was in his elements once again in the first singles match as he hardly broke a sweat in his 21-14, 21-15 win against Malaysia’s Zulfadli Zulkiffli, who is ranked 38.
India’s doubles pair of Manu Attri and Sumeet Reddy beat Juan Shen Low-Kiang Meng Tan 10-21, 22-20, 21-16 in the first doubles match of the tie.
India, however, had a big disappointment with with Ajay Jayaram (ranked 25) losing to Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin 21-17, 12-21, 16-21.
In the second doubles match, Indian combine of Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Akshay Dewalkar went down fighting to Malaysia’s duo of Yew Sin Ong and Ee Yi Tieo 1421, 21-14, 12-21.
The five-match tie comprised three singles and two doubles matches.
However, it was a heartbreak for the Indian women, who came a cropper in the absence of star player Saina Nehwal.
India’s rising shuttler PV Sindhu, ranked world number 12, fought a bitter battle before losing her singles match 21-13 21-14 to Korea’s Ji Hyun Sung (ranked world number 6).
India’s star doubles pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa fought hard in the first doubles but went down 21-15 20-22 21-13 to Kyung Eun Jung-Seung Chan Shin of Korea.
In the second singles, Korea’s Yeon Ju Bae, ranked 14, trounced India’s PC Thulasi, ranked 11-21 21-14 21-15. (PTI)
