Badminton, French Open Super 750: Treesa-Gayatri beat Ashwini-Tanisha; Satwik-Chirag, Lakshya win
Priyanshu Rajawat lost 8-21, 15-21 to Viktor Axelsen.
The Indian campaign at the 2024 French Open Super 750 got off to a good start in Paris as the doubles pair of Treesa Jolly-Gayatri Gopichand, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty, and men’s singles shuttler Lakshya Sen all got off to a winning start on Tuesday.
Up against fellow Indians Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto, Treesa-Gayatri had to work hard for their win. The world No 23 pair came from behind to register a 16-21, 21-19, 21-17 win to advance to the pre-quarterfinals.
Having pocketed the first game, Ponnappa-Crasto gave the opponents a run for their money but faltered and lost points at crucial junctures as they were forced into a decider.
Treesa-Gayatri dominated the deciding game right from the start and led 11-4 before the change of ends. Though Ponnappa-Crasto fought back well later, it was too late to trouble their opponents.
With the two pairs still locked in a nail-biting tussle for the 2024 Paris Olympics qualification, the victory over their counterparts could not have come at a better time for Treesa-Gayatri.
Earlier in the day, the world No 1 men’s doubles pair of Rankireddy and Shetty went past Malaysia’s Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi 21-13, 24-22 in straight games.
The Indians pocketed the first game without breaking a sweat...
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