Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Top seed and title-favourite in Youth Girls, Suhana Saini of Haryana, has been forced to visit the drawing board after her shock 3-2 defeat to Pritha Vartikar of Maharashtra in the Khelo India Youth Games on the second day at the Abhay Prashal here Tuesday.
Taking the top perch was Pritha, who showcased the occasion to prove a point, giving a tweak to the original script. The Haryana girl had no business losing her last Group A match after taking a comfortable 2-0 lead. However, Pritha had other plans up her sleeve and went into an all-out attacking mode that paid rich dividends. The biggest disappointment for Suhana must have been the loss in the decider that Pritha controlled all the way allowing just a solitary point to her rival.
The loss has pushed her to the second spot in the group, but Suhana, when she visits the table the day after--the doubles events begin tomorrow—for the second stage, she will be wiser not to be complacent.
Pritha pushed a confident Suhana on the back foot by cleverly attacking and varying the pace, upsetting the latter's rhythm. Suhana never came to terms with her opponent's change of strategy. The same trend continued in the fourth game, stopping Suhana in her tracks in the decider.
As for the Youth Boys, Divyansh Srivastava from UP, Ankur Bhattacharjee from West Bengal and Jash Modi from Maharashtra took their appointed place at the top of their A, B and C groups, but the second-placed Aadarsh Om Chhetri from Delhi pushed leader Sarth Mishra from UP to the second spot in Group D.
But he defeated Arunachal's Tarh Maph 3-0 to take the second slot available from Group D. The match, for his calibre, was a mere formality, and the UP boy did a clinical job for another shot in the knockout stage.
Praneet Bhaskar from Bengal, Khelendrajit from Manipur, and Soumyadeep Sarkar from Bengal earned the second-place finish in their respective groups. However, K.J. Aakash would feel upset about not making the grade in Group B.
Results:
Boys Singles:
Group A: Divyansh Srivastava (UP) bt Praneet Bhaskar (Ben) 10-12, 11-8, 11-7, 13-11; Praneet Bhaskar (Ben) bt P. Yeshwant (Kar) 11-13, 11-8, 11-7, 12-10.
Group B: Khelendrajit Yengkhom (Man) w/o Ansh Goyal (MP) 3-0; Ankur Bhattacharjee (Ben) bt K.J. Aakash (Kar) 11-9, 5-11, 11-4, 11-9; Khelendrajit Yengkhom (Man) bt K.J. Aakash (Kar) 15-13, 11-5, 11-8; Ankur Bhattacharjee (Ben) bt Ansh Goyal (MP) 11-9, 11-3, 11-4.
Group C: Dhairya Tandel (D&D) w/o Preyesh Raj Suresh (TN) 3-0; Jash Modi (Mah) bt Soumyadeep Sarkar (Ben) 7-11, 12-10, 12-10, 11-8; Soumyadeep Sarkar (Ben) w/o Preyesh Raj Suresh (TN) 3-0; Jash Modi (Mah) bt Dhairya Tandel (D&D) 11-4, 11-3, 11-8.
Group D: Neil Mulye (Mah) bt Tarh Maph (Aru) 11-2, 11-5, 11-1; Aadarsh Om Chhetri (Del) bt Sarth Mishra (UP) 10-12, 11-6, 11-7, 11-4; Sarth Mishra (UP) bt Tarh Maph (Aru) 11-1, 11-1, 11-7.
Girls Singles:
Group A: Suhana Saini (Har) bt Shriya Anand (TN) 11-7, 11-9, 11-9; Pritha Vartikar (Mah) bt Oishiki Joardar (Ben) 11-5, 11-7, 6-11, 8-11, 11-4; Pritha Vartikar (Mah) bt Suhana Saini (Har) 5-11, 3-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-1; Oishiki Joardar (Ben) bt Shriya Anand (TN) 6-11, 11-4, 12-10, 7-11, 11-7.
Group B: Yashaswini Ghorpade (Kar) bt Jennifer Varghese (Mah) 11-5, 11-7, 7-11, 11-7; Prithoki Chakraborti (Har) bt Bhagyashree Dave (MP) 11-5, 11-5, 11-8; Yashaswini Gorphade (mar) bt Bhagyashree Dave (MP) 11-4, 11-3, 11-3; Prithoki Chakraborti (Har) bt Jennifer Varghese (mah) 11-8, 11-6, 8-11, 11-7.
Group C: Nehal Venkatasamy (TN) bt Anushka Chauhan (D&D) 11-2, 11-3, 11-3; Risha Mirchandani (Mah) bt Anaryaga Manjunath (Kar) 11-9, 7-11, 11-8, 11-9; Risha Mirchandani (Mah) bt Anushka Chauhan (D&D) 11-1, 11-1, 11-1; Nehal Venkatasamy (TN) bt Anargaya Manjunath (Kar) 12-10, 11-9, 11-9.
Group D: Trupti Purohit (Kaar) bt Abime Mihu (Aru) 11-5, 11-2, 11-4; Taneesha Kotecha (Mah) bt Lakshita Narang (Del0 11-8, 10-12, 11-7, 11-6; Taneesha Kotecha (mah) bt Abime Mihu (Aru) 11-3, 11-3, 11-3; Lakshita Narang (Del) bt Trupti Purohit (Kar) 11-9, 9-11, 11-3, 11-8
