Kazuma clinches double crown at India Junior Int’l Grand Prix
Pune, Aug 31: Indian pair of Aanya Bisht and Angel Punera produced a spirited performance to clinch the girls’ doubles title with an upset win over fifth-seeded Japanese duo Aoi Banno and Yuzu Ueno at the Yonex Sunrise India Junior International Grand Prix Badminton Tournament here on Sunday. The unseeded pair rallied from a game down to beat the Japanese duo 21-23, 21-12, 21-17. There was further joy for the hosts in the mixed doubles, where Vansh Dev and Shravani Walekar outplayed C Lalramsanga and Taarini Suri 21-12, 21-13 to lift the crown. In other results, Japan’s Kazuma Kawano secured a memorable double, bagging both the boys’ singles and doubles titles. In the boys’ singles final, ninth seed Kawano stunned second seed Hyuga Takano 23-21, 18-21, 25-23 in a marathon contest that lasted one hour and nine minutes. The girls’ singles title also went Japan’s way with Yuzuno Watanabe overcoming 10th seed Yurika Nagafuchi 16-21, 21-13, 21-17 in an all-Japanese summit clash. In the boys doubles, Kazuma Kawano teamed up with Shuji Sawada to get past another Japanese pair of Shunsei Nemoto and Nagi Yoshitsugu 21-15, 21-18. (PTI)
Had I won medal in Paris, it could have been my farewell: Lovlina
New Delhi,, Aug 30: Lovlina Borgohain had considered retiring from boxing to focus on her academy, but she set aside such thoughts after missing out on a medal at Paris Games. The Assam boxer, instead, has now trained her sights on a second Olympic podium as she gears up for her international comeback at the upcoming World Championships. The Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist has been away from international competition since the Paris Games last August. In the time away from the ring, she focused on setting up her academy, which was inaugurated in June in Guwahati. “When I thought about starting my academy, I had planned to play until Paris (Olympics), and then maybe quit playing,” Lovlina said. “But the result in Paris wasn’t what I had expected. Had I won a medal there, that could have been my farewell.” In the French capital, the 27-year-old came agonisingly close to winning back-to-back Olympic medals but lost in the quarterfinals of the women’s middleweight (75kg) division to eventual champion Li Qian of China. Asked if the 2028 Los Angeles Games could be her farewell if she finishes on the podium there, Lovlina was candid: “Yes, that is possible.” “I could have won gold in the Paris Olympics as well because all those women who stood on the podium, I have beaten them all before,” she said with a hint of regret. Her comeback will begin at the World Championships in Liverpool on September 4. But the reigning 75kg world champion, already a three-time Worlds medallist, admitted limited preparation, having played only one national-level tournament to make the road steeper. She is focusing on building endurance and strength while also analysing her opponents. (PTI)