DUBAI: It was a unique feeling for India’s promising doubles shuttler Tanisha Crasto as she played against her former teammates in United Arab Emirates, at the ongoing Blue Ocean Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships at the Expo City- Dubai Exhibition Centre on Wednesday.
Crasto, who started playing badminton and trained for seven years in the UAE, moved to India five years ago and has been part of the core Indian team since then.
“It was a unique moment for me as the players I have trained with in the past, I am playing against them. While saying this, I was very impressed with the way Vishnu played today against Lakshya in the men’s singles game,” said Crasto who paired with Ishaan Bhatnagar to defeat Bharat Latheesh and Nayonika Rajesh 21-13, 21-8 in the mixed doubles match.
Crasto-Bhatnagar’s win sealed the cruising 5-0 win for India who were given a rousing start against the host UAE through Lakshya Sen, the world no. 11 and India’s latest badminton sensation.
Sen‘s 21-16, 21-12 win over Dev Vishnu however saw a few hiccups as he was stretched to the limit by the UAE shuttler, also an Indian, in the first game. Vishnu was leading 12-8 and then 14-12 before the lead exchanged hands. “I was also making a lot of errors in the first game which I could have avoided,” the Indian star said.
“A lot of young UAE players who are from India, all of them have a bright future ahead. They just need to keep working hard on your game. They have already for the opportunity to play at the highest level, amongst good opponents. It’s a good experience for them. And I hope they make the most out of this,” said Sen of his opponent Vishnu.
“UAE is like ‘mini-India’. I always enjoy playing here with a lot of crowd support and cheering.”
Playing against idol
For Vishnu, despite the loss it was a proud moment to play against one of his idols. “I was very excited to play against Lakshya bhaiya. He is like my idol and watched him play in India also. I often talk to him also after his matches.”
Asked if he had a strategy playing against Sen, the 16-year-old UAE player said: “I planned to be smooth on court and keep the shuttle on play.”
“I hope I can play better next time. My dream is to play the Olympics one day.”
Other winners for Indian were Aakarshi Kashyap (WS), Dhruv Kapila and Chirag Shetty (MD) and Ashwini Bhat K. and Shikha Gautam (WD).
India’s real test begins on Thursday when they face Malaysia, while UAE face Kazakhstan in their final Group B game.
Indonesia eye top 2 finish
All the top teams look set to top the groups after winning their respective round-robin matches.
Indonesia dismantled Bahrain 5-0, riding on their rising star Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo crushing Adnan Ebrahim 21-5, 21-9.
“I am happy with the way the team is performing so far. It’s still the group stage going on. We are looking to finish the group stage winning all our matches. Our aim is to play the final here,” said Indonesia head coach Rionny Mainaky looking ahead to Indonesia’s final Group C match against Thailand. Indonesia were the bronze medallist at the 2019 edition.
Meanwhile, defending champions China also continued their winning run at the continental event winning 5-0 against Singapore. While China managed to pull off most of the matches in straight games, Lan Xi Lei had to come back from a game down to beat Teh Jia Heng Jason 14-21, 21-19, 21-14 in the men’s singles tie.
“It was a tight match but I am very happy to win it. My goal is to score more points for my team. This is my first time in Dubai and the experience is very good,” said Lei.
China will play their final Group A match against Korea on Thursday.
The knockout stage begins from Friday after a draw.
RESULTS
Group C: Indonesia vs. Bahrain 5-0
Group A: China vs. Singapore 5-0
Group A: Korea vs. Uzbekistan 5-0
Group C: Thailand vs. Lebanon 5-0
Group D: Japan vs. Hong Kong China 4-1
Group D Chinese Taipei vs Pakistan 5-0
Group B India vs United Arab Emirates 5-0
Group C Thailand vs Bahrain 5-0
Group C Syria vs Lebanon 5-0
Group B Malaysia vs Kazakhstan 5-0