It was a serious test of big-match temperament for R.M.V. Gurusaidutt. But, he failed to raise the bar as top seed Sameer Verma came back strongly after losing the first game to notch up a creditable 16-21, 21-15, 21-11 win in the men’s semifinals of the Hyderabad Open badminton championship at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium here on Saturday.
Sammer’s grit and determination came to the fore as he switched gears in the decider after Gurusaidutt was off to an impressive start in the first game with his wonderful placements and big smashes.
The beginning of the second game saw a keen tussle with little to choose between the two players, but once Sameer took a crucial 11-8 lead, he never looked back essaying his trade-mark down-the-line strokes and showing better control at the net.
Gurusaidutt’s game went awry in the decider and he couldn’t even get the length of his returns right.
In the other men’s singles semifinal, Joo Ven Soong of Malaysia recorded a surprise 21-17, 21-14 win over seventh-seeded Indonesian Abdul Kholik Firman.
India’s top-seeded doubles combinations had a good outing with mixed pair of Pranaav J Chopra and N. Sikki Reddy and men’s duo of R. Satwiksairaj and Chirag Shetty making it to the finals.
The results (semifinals):
Men: Sameer Verma bt R.M.V. Gurusaidutt 16-21, 21-15, 21-11.
Joo Ven Soong (Mas) bt Abdul Kholik Firman (Ina) 21-17, 21-14. Doubles: R. Satwiksairaj & Chirag Shetty bt Arun George & Sanyam Shukla 21-14, 21-6.
Cayhono Akbar Bingang & Isfahani Mohd Reza Pahlevi (Ina) bt Mohamad Arif Ab Latif Arif & Nur Mohd. Azriyn Ayub Azriyn (Mas) 21-14, 15-10 (retd.).
Women: Deng Joy Xuan (Hkg) bt Jia Min Yeo (Sgp) 21-7, 21-14; Kim Ga Eun (Kor) bt Yu Jin Sim (Kor) 21-13, 17-21, 21-15.
Doubles: Ng Tsz Yau & Sing Ying Yuen (Hkg) bt Imanuela Agatha & Ramadhanti Siti Fadia Silva (Ina) 16-21, 21-14, 21-19; Hoo Vivian & Cheng Wen Yap (Mas) bt Barkah Yulfira Jauza Fadhila Sugiarto (Ina) 16-21, 21-11, 21-14.
Mixed doubles: Pranaav J. Chopra & N. Sikki Reddy bt Chang Tak Ching & Ng Wing Yung (Hkg) 21-19, 21-15.
Cayhono Akbar Bintang & Kandow Winny Oktavina bt Samosir Renaldi & Julimarbela Hediana (Ina) 22-20, 21-13.