Indian shuttlers dominate opening round at BWF Junior World Championships | Badminton News – The Times of India

Visakhapatnam: The high of the mixed team events that gave the country its first-ever bronze could not be dampened as India started the individual events campaign with an all-win record in front of the crowd at the National Center of Excellence in Guwahati on Monday. With the seeded players earning a bye in the first round, the remaining competitors got their first taste of the 3×15 format first adopted at the BWF Junior World Championships. The word ‘intense’ was used by most of the young shuttlers to describe their first experience with the format, and it was Lalthazuala Hmar who started the hosts’ campaign in the boys’ singles on a positive note. The Mizo player, playing his first world match, won the tie in 14 minutes with a 15-4, 15-4 win over Uganda’s Denis Mukasa. “This is my first time in World Juniors,” Hmar told TOI from Guwahati after the match. “It felt really great to play at this level. I hope I can perform even better and win a medal.” Gnana Dattu TT, the only participant in individual events who was not part of the bronze-winning team, followed a different path and overcame his nerves before beating Milan Mesterhazy of Hungary 5-15, 15-7, 15-7 in another boys’ singles match. “I was obviously nervous in the first game,” Gnana Dattu said in a BAI release. “Also, this is the second time I faced a European player, and it took me some time to understand their playing style. But once I came out on top in the second game, I felt confident that I could win this match.” While the Hyderabad-born shuttler was the only Indian to struggle early on with the fast-paced new format, Asian Junior Championships bronze medalist Vennala K defeated Ireland’s Siofra Flynn 15-1, 15-6 in the opening round of the girls’ singles. Lalramsanga C, the other Mizo shuttler in India’s plans, followed the path of his state rival Hmar, this time with partner Taarini Suri in the mixed doubles. The pair overcame an indifferent start to beat Irishmen Senan O’Rourke and Michelle Shochan 15-13, 15-9. The other Indian pairs also advanced comfortably, with Vansh Dev and Dianka Waldia beating England’s Anish Nair and Mia Fox 15-6, 15-11, while Vishnu Kedhar Kode and Keerthy Manchala defeated Ghana’s Obapomba Adu-Mintah and Moslena Ama Korama 15-7, 15-8. One of the best matches of the day was Sri Lanka’s Thidasa Weragoda, who defeated Malaysia’s Lim Boon Le 4-15, 15-8, 17-15. The spotlight for India on Tuesday will be the girls’ singles, with two of the hosts’ top medalists – Tanvi Sharma and Unnati Hooda – among the seeded players set to begin their campaign.