Sudirman Cup-2011 updates-India

China defeated India 3-1 in the Sudirman Cup Level-1 elimination round that was held today.

Saina Nehwal was the lone Indian to win a match against the strong Chinese team in this prestigious Double Star Sudirman Cup-2011 mixed team event being held at Qingdao in China. Saina defeated arch rival and World No.3 Xin Wang of China 21-15, 21-11.

In the other matches, current World No.3 Lin Dan of China defeated a fighting P. Kashyap of India 21-14, 21-14, showing that the young Indian star that he still has some way to go before he can consistently beat the very best of the badminton world. Earlier in the Group C match against Thailand, Kashyap had stunned world no.6 Boonsak Ponsana and his win had helped India to defeat Thailand.

In the men's doubles match, World no.5 pair of Yun Cai and Haifeng Fu of China defeated India's top doubles pair of Rupesh Kumar/Sanave Thomas by a score of 21-15, 21-14, and in the women's doubles the world's No.1 pair of Xiaoli Wang and Yang Yu of China defeated the Indian pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa 21-8, 21-13.

In the earlier Level 1 - Group C rounds of the Sudirman Cup-2011, India had lost the opener against Chinese Taipei but had come back strongly to defeat Thailand (and this even after Saina Nehwal had lost her match against her Thai opponent). Chinese Taipei had then defeated Thailand, and thus the top 2 teams of Group C, Chinese Taipei and India qualified for the Level 1 elimination rounds.

However any further progress by India in the Sudirman Cup-2011, was halted by the top badminton team in the world, the strong Chinese team. However Saina's win against Xin Wang was still the silver lining for India, and this win confirms that she still has not lost the spark that she displayed in the year 2010, and raises even more hopes from her for a good showing in the forthcoming London Olympics-2012. Also P. Kashyap's good showing in this tournament has raised hopes from him in the future.

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India lose Sudirman Cup-2011 opener

India lost their first tie of the Sudirman Cup-2011, as the Indian team went down fighting to Chinese Taipei on Sunday by a score of 2-3.

India's top singles players Saina Nehwal and P. Kashyap won their individual women's and men's singles matches. However the Indians failed to notch the required win in the doubles ties, as the team lost all their 3 doubles matches.

Saina dropped the second game before coming back strongly in the 3rd set to win her singles match against world no.21 Tzu Ying Tai, while Kashyap came up with a straight sets victory in his match. All the Indian doubles players lost their matches in straight sets.

Men's singles: P. Kashyap bt. Hsuan Yi Hsueh 21-16, 21-13
Women's singles: Saina Nehwal bt. Tzu Ying Tai 21-10, 12-21, 21-17

Men's doubles: Rupesh Kumar/Sanave Thomas lost to Sheng Mu Lee/Chieh Min Fang 15-21, 18-21
Women's doubles: Jwala Gutta/Ashwini Ponnappa lost to Wen Hsing Cheng/Yu Chin Chien 15-21, 17-21
Mixed doubles: Aparna Balan/Arun Vishnu lost to Sheng Mu Lee/Yu Chin Chien 17-21, 10-21

The Sudirman Cup is a mixed team event, in which national teams comprising of both men and women players compete for the title. The event is being held in Qingdao, China.

The top 12 teams of the elite Level 1 group, have been divided into 4 groups of 3 teams each. India is in group C which has teams from Chinese Taipei and Thailand, and the initial ties of each group are being held as per a round robin (all-play-all) format. India will be facing the Thailand team next on Monday 23-May-2011, to keep their Sudirman Cup-2011 hopes alive.


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Sudirman Cup-2011 starts tomorrow

The 12th Double Star BWF Sudirman Cup-2011 Mixed Team Championships badminton tournament will be held at the Qingdao Sports Centre Conson Stadium, in Qingdao, China from the 22nd -29th May 2011.

The Sudirman Cup badminton tournament is a World team championships, that is held every two years, and it is one of the most prestigious titles in badminton. The cup is named in the memory of former champion badminton player Dick Sudirman of Indonesia (1922-1986) who was the founder of the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI) as well as its chairman for 22 years. Dick was also the vice president of IBF (The International badminton federation) in 1975.

India is seeded 10th in the event, and is thus a part of the Level 1 elite group which consists of the world's top 12 national teams. The 12 teams in Level 1 are further divided into 4 groups, of 3 teams each. The Indian team is placed in Group C alongwith teams from Thailand and Chinese Taipei.

The Indian badminton team selected for the Sudirman Cup 2011 mixed team championships consists of 7 male players, and 6 female players.

Indian Team:

Men players:
Arvind Bhat
Pranav Chopra
Akshay Dewalkar
Rupesh Kumar
P. Kashyap
Sanave Thomas
Arun Vishnu

Women players:
Aparna Balan
Jwala Gutta
Aditi Mutatkar
Saina Nehwal
Ashwini Ponnappa
Prajakta Sawant

The Sudirman Cup-2011 is scheduled to start from tomorrow 22nd May. India is drawn to play against the Chinese Taipei team first.


Related Articles:

India lose Sudirman Cup Opening tie - go down to Chinese Taipei 2-3

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Saina Nehwal runners-up at Malaysia

Top seed Saina Nehwal of India could not overcome the challenge of 2nd seed Xin Wang of China and had to be satisfied with being the runners-up at the Malaysia Open (YONEX-SUNRISE Malaysia Open Grand Prix Gold 2011) badminton tournament that was held at Alor Setar in Malaysia.

Xin Wang defeated Saina Nehwal 13-21 21-8 21-14 even after losing the first set.

In the men's singles, World No.1 Lee Chong Wei was unstoppable yet again, as he added the Malaysia Open GP Gold-2011 title to his fast growing list of titles this year, defeating 7th seeded Chunlai Bao of China 21-9, 21-19 in two straight sets.

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MBL-Maharashtra Badminton League starts

The Amanora Maharashtra Badminton League (MBL), India's first ever premier badminton league started with a bang on Friday at Pune. This the first league badminton tournament being played in India, on the lines of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in cricket.

The format of the MBL - Maharashtra Badminton League tournament is such that there will be 5 matches in each round played between each of the teams. (This will include 2 Mens singles matches, 1 Women's singles match, 1 Mens Doubles, and 1 Mixed doubles). Each MBL team has at least 2 women players in its side.

The Maharashtra Badminton League's first round matches between Daring Doves and Gorgeous Gannets held on the opening day on Friday, were a close affair with Daring Doves finally clinching the issue with a score of 3-2. (They scored 3 wins, and 2 losses. Eshan Naqvi from Thane, former National champion Trupti Murgunde, and the Mens doubles pair of Varun and Shlok ensured that Daring Doves got the better of the gannets in the first round)

Daring Doves vs. Gorgeous Gannets match scores were as below.

Mens Singles
Eshan Naqvi  (DD) - Sarang Lakhani  (GG) 25-23 21-11
Shubhankar Dey (DD) - Akshay Dewalkar (GG) 21-14 21-23 16-21

Women's singlesTrupti Murgunde (DD) - Riya Pillai 21-12 21-11

Mens Doubles
Varun Khanwalkar/Shlok Ramchandra (DD) - Aditya Pandya/Prashant Bahatre (GG) 24-22 21-18

Mixed Doubles Sanyogita Ghorpade/Gandhar Marathe (DD) - Gauri Ghate/Rohit More (GG) 19-21 8-21

If the Maharashtra Badminton League is successfull this year, it could spread to become an All-India badminton league tournament in the future, which will be good for the development of the sport.

The first leg of the tournament is being held over the weekend at Pune, while the next weekend matches will be played at Vashi in Navi Mumbai, and the 3rd and final weekend matches back again at Pune.


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Saina Nehwal in finals of Malaysia Open

Saina Nehwal, the top seed, stormed into the finals of the Malaysia Open (YONEX-SUNRISE Malaysia Open Grand Prix Gold 2011) badminton tournament that is being held at Alor Setar in Malaysia.

Saina Nehwal defeated 7th seeded Ji Hyun Sung of Korea 21-14, 21-13 in the semi-finals.

In the other semi-finals of the women's singles 2nd seeded Xin Wang of China defeated 4th seeded Youn Joo Bae of Korea 21-6, 21-19 to set up a clash in the final with Saina.

The final match between Saina and Xin Wang will be played on Sunday 08/May/2011.

In the men's singles, top seed and world no.1 Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia and 7th seeded Chunlai Bao of China will clash in the finals.

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Saina Nehwal in semis of Malaysia Open

Top seeded Saina Nehwal of India stormed into the semi-finals of the ongoing Malaysia Open (YONEX-SUNRISE Malaysia Open Grand Prix Gold 2011 badminton tournament) being held at 'Sultan Abdul Halim Stadium' in Alor Setar, Malaysia.

Saina Nehwal, the only Indian woman participating in this tournament, defeated Lin Wang of China in the quarterfinals yesterday. She next faces 7th seed Ji Hyun Sung of Korea in the semi-finals. The other women's singles semi-finals will be played between 2nd seeded Xin Wang of China and 4th seeded Youn Joo Bae of Korea.

Saina Nehwal had crashed out in the first round of the India Open Super series held earlier this month at New Delhi, and hence would be looking forward for a title finish, at this Malaysia Open Grand Prix Gold tournament.

In the men's singles World No.1 Lee Chong Wei has continued his excellent form of this year to reach the semi-finals of the event.

Amongst the Indian men participating in the event, RMV Guru Sai Dutt, Anand Pawar, and Ajay Jayaram were defeated in the first round, while 12th seeded P Kashyap, Arvind Bhat, and Anup Shridhar made their exit in their 2nd round matches.

• Anup Shridhar defeated world no.20 and 8th seed Choong Hann Wong of Malaysia in the first round, however lost to Indonesian Sony Dwi Kuncoro in the 2nd round.

• Anand Pawar did well to win the first set against world no.8 and 3rd seed Tien Minh Nguyen of Vietnam, however could not sustain the tempo, and lost the next 2 sets and the match.

• Arvind Bhat lost in the second round against 11th seed Sho Sasaki in a match that lasted 3 sets.

• Ajay Jayaram also stretched 9th seed Hyun Il Lee of Korea to 3 sets.

Saina Nehwal is scheduled to play her semi-final match of the Malaysia Open GP Gold, and all Indian badminton fans would be looking forward to a spirited performance from her.

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Thailand Open-2011-Smiling Fish International

While the India Open-2011 Superseries event was being held in New Delhi in India, an international series badminton tournament was held at Trang in Thailand, the Smiling Fish international series tournament on the same dates, from 26th Apr to 1st May-2011.

Thailand were home with both the Gold and Silver medals in the women's doubles section, and except the women's singles event, reached at least the semi-finals of all the other events played.

Winners  at the Smiling Fish International series badminton tournament were:

Men's Singles
1 [SIN] Yong Zhao Ashton CHEN [2]
2 [THA] Parinyawat THONGNUAM
3/4 [SIN] Zi Liang Derek WONG [1]
3/4 [MAS] Fang Yang LIM [11]

Men's Doubles1 [MAS] Nelson Wei Keat HEG [4] /[MAS] Ee Yi TEO
2 [INA] Hendra Setyo NUGRORHO [8] /[INA] Tri Kusuma WARDHANA
3/4 [THA] Bodinth ISSARA /[THA] Pisit POODCHALAT
3/4 [INA] Andhika ANHAR [7] /[INA] I Komang Sandy WIJAYA

Women's Singles 1 [JPN] Yuka KUSUNOSE
2 [JPN] Emi MOUE
3/4 [MAS] Evelyn Yi Lyn CHEE [8]
3/4 [MAS] Sonia Su Ya CHEAH [5]

Women's Doubles
1 [THA] Chayanit CHALARDCHALEAM /[THA] Pattharaporn JINDAPOL
2 [THA] Narissapat LAM /[THA] Maetanee PHATTANAPHITOON
3/4 [THA] Rojjana CHUTHABUNDITKUL /[THA] Chanida JULRATTANAMANEE
3/4 [MAS] Mei Kuan CHOW [2] /[MAS] Meng Yean LEE

Mixed Doubles 1 [MAS] Aik Quan TAN [4] /[MAS] Pei Jing LAI
2 [INA] Andhika ANHAR /[INA] Kesya Nurvita HANADIA
3/4 [THA] Wanwat AMPANSUWAN [3] /[THA] Chonthicha KITITHARAKUL
3/4 [THA] Wasapon UTTAMANG /[THA] Chayanit CHALARDCHALEAM

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India Open Superseries-2011 winners

The Yonex Sunrise India Open Superseries 2011 came to a close today at the Siri Fort Complex at New Delhi in India today.

As expected top seed and World No.1 Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia, won the men's singles title defeating 3rd seed Peter Gade of Denmark.
In the women's singles section, Thailand's Porntip Buranaprasertsuk emerged the surprise winner.
The final results/standings of the India Open were:

Winners:
Men's Singles1 [MAS] Chong Wei Lee [1]
2 [DEN] Peter Hoeg Gade [3]
3/4 [HKG] Yun Hu [8]
3/4 [KOR] Sung Hwan Park [6]

Men's Doubles
1 [JPN] Hirokatsu Hashimoto [4]/ [JPN] Noriyasu Hirata
2 [INA] Angga Pratama/[INA] Ryan Agung Saputra
3/4 [MAS] Kien Keat Koo [1] /[MAS] Boon Heong Tan
3/4 [INA] Alvent Yulianto Chandra [3] /[INA] Hendra Aprida Gunawan

Women's Singles 1 [THA] Porntip Buranaprasertsuk
2 [KOR] Youn Joo Bae [3]
3/4 [HKG] Pui Yin Yip [4]
3/4 [JPN] Sayaka Sato

Women's Doubles
1 [JPN] Miyuki Maeda [1] /[JPN] Satoko Suetsuna
2 [JPN] Mizuki Fujii [2] /[JPN] Reika Kakiiwa
3/4 [INA] Meiliana Jauhari [4] /[INA] Greysia Polii
3/4 [HKG] Lok Yan Poon /[HKG] Ying Suet Tse

Mixed Doubles
1 [INA] Tantowi Ahmad [4] /[INA] Liliyana Natsir
2 [INA] Fran Kurniawan [3] /[INA] Pia Zebadiah Bernadeth
3/4 [INA] Muhammad Rijal [7] /[INA] Debby Susanto
3/4 [MAS] Peng Soon Chan [5] /[MAS] Liu Ying Goh

From an Indian perspective the best performances were from RMV Guru Sai Dutt and Sourabh Verma, both of whom reached till the quarterfinals of the event.


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