Mumbai : Nagpur’s giant-killer Saarang Lakhanee continued to have a dream run as he eclipsed Mumbai Suburbs’ Susrut Karmarkar in the men’s singles semi-final thriller in the 1st Maharashtra State badminton selection tournament, sponsored by Tridhaatu Realty and Infra and hosted by Victory Sports Consultants at Chembur Gymkhana Saturday.
The hour-long battle of attrition saw Saarang prevailing at 19-21, 21-12, 21-19. The unseeded lad will next take on top seeded Subhankar Dey of Pune, for the coveted crown. Subhankar outplayed Greater Mumbai’s Nigel D’Sa 21-15, 21-14.
Likewise the women’s final pittied top seeded Neha Pandit against her Pune teammate unseeded Shruti Mundada. While Neha brushed aside Vaishanavi Bhale 21-11, 21-13, Shruti shocked second seeded Mudra Dhainje 21-15, 21-19.
Results: Men’s singles (Quarterfinals): (1)Subhankar Dey (PN) bt (8) Yash Wagh (NSK) 21-14, 21-15; (3) Nigel D’Sa (GM) bt Kabir Kanzarkar (TH) 21-9, 24-22; Sushrut Karmarkar (MS) bt (4) Arijeet Bose (MS) 21-14, 21-15; Saarang Lakhanee (NGP) w/o Siddharth Thakur (NSK). (Semifinals): (1)Subhankar Dey (PN) bt (3) Nigel D’Sa (GM) 21-15, 21-14; Saarang Lakhanee (NGP) bt Sushrut Karmarkar (MS) 19-21, 21-12, 21-19.