Former internationals Aparna Popat and Mangrish Palekar showed plenty of their badminton talent while clinching double crowns at the G D Birla Memorial Masters Badminton Tournament, organized by Badminton 45, managed by Badminton Gurukul and hosted by Bombay Gymkhana.
Aparna Popat was in fine fettle as she combined with Naheed Divecha to defeat Preet Kaur and Priya Ambekar 21-8, 21-9 in the women’s combination 75+ doubles final. She then partnered with Ayaz Bilwla to get the better of Rajesh D‘Souza and Divecha 21-9, 21-15 to win the mixed combination 80+ title.
Palekar and Vikrant Patwardhan scored a straight games win over Bilawala abd Shaiilesh Daga to win the men’s doubles 45+ title, but he and partner Deepak Jaitly had a fight on their hands and had to rally from the loss of the first game before defeating Abhidnya Sawant and Rajesh Bhanushali 19-21, 21-9, 21-6 in the men’s combination 45+ final.
Manoj Nachanekar justified his top billing among the professionals winning the singles title and then partnering Rahul Bhuwad for the doubles crown.
There was glory for hosts Bombay Gymkhana, who won the Team Championship defeating Chembur Gymkhana 2-0.
Watching the proceedings was former World No.1 badminton ace Kidambi Srikanth, who had praise for this event which played a big role in keeping the sport alive in the city. “It’s a beautifully organized event by Badminton 45, guided by Badminton Gurukul and hosted by Bombay Gymkhana and I’m honoured to be here to inspire and motivate all the participants,” said Srikant.
Results:
Men’s Double 45+: Mangirish Paleker/Vikrant Patwardhan bt Ayaz Bilawala/Shailesh Daga – 21-10, 21-19.
Women’s Combination 75+: Aparna Popat/Naheed Divecha [1] bt Preet Kaur/Priya Ambekar [2] - 21-8, 21-9.
Mixed Combination 80+: Ayaz Bilawala/Aparna Popat [2] bt Rajesh D’souza/Naheed Divecha [1] 21-9, 21-15.
Men’s Combination 85+: Deepak Jaitly/Mangirish Palekar[1] bt Abhidnya Sawant/Rajesh Bhanushali – 19-21, 21-9, 21-6
Men’s Combination 110+: Rajesh D'souza/Shailesh Daga[2] bt Abhay Naik/Anoopkumar Shukla - 21-13; 21-11.
Professional Singles: Manoj Nachanekar [1] bt Chetan Bandarkar [3] - 21-15, 21-12.
Professional Doubles: Manoj Nachanekar/Rahul Bhuwad [2] bt Chetan Bandarkar/Rajan Samant [1] 19-21, 21-19, 21-15.
Team Event: Bombay Gymkhana ‘A’ bt Chembur Gymkhana - 2-0
