Lucknow: Olympic quarterfinalists P Kashyap beat Russia’s Vladmir Malkov 24-22, 16-21, 21-18 to enter the pre-quarterfinals in the men’s singles at the $120,000 Dr KL Garg-Syed Modi India GP Gold Badminton Championship here on Wednesday.
Earlier, Indian star Ajay Jayram reached the men’s round of 16 in style. The Mumbai-based shuttler beat Indonesian Sukamta Evert 21-9, 21-15 in the second round after an easy outing in the first against Russia’s Nikita Khakimov (21-15, 21-13). India’s K Srikanth also entered the pre-quarters with a comfortable win over compatriot Vinay Kumar Reddy, winning 21-12, 21-12.
The second seeded player in the women’s singles and world No.23, India’s PV Sindhu cruised into the round of 16, with a 21-6, 21-12 win over Malaysia’s Li Lian Yang.
However the biggest shock of day came Pratul Joshi, just 18 years old and a student of University of Delhi provided a sensational start to his campaign. The Indian shuttler stunned the top seed and former Olympic champion Taufiq Hidayat in the men’s singles first round, smashing winners along the way in his 21-17, 21-12 win in 30 minutes. Joshi seemed as much surprised with the outcome as his Indonesian rival.
However, Joshi’s joy in the morning session proved short-lived in the post-lunch session as he lost the next round 21-18, 16-21, 22-20 to Hidayat’s compatriot, the other Indonesian Siswanto.
Though, overall, the boy from Dhar (Madhya Pradesh) hogged the limelight on the opening day with his giant-killing efforts and gutsy display before crashing out.
“He (Taufiq) is my idol. I was completely blank during the match. However, I have been studying his videos on Youtube. I guess it helped me a bit today. At my age, he (Taufiq) was already playing in the finals of the All-England,” said the self-effacing Joshi.
Hidayat seemed upset with the result and blamed “bad stomach” for his tardy show on the court today. “I had a bad stomach... and I was not feeling well,” said the top seed Indonesian. Apparently, Joshi was playing on painkillers due to a niggling bone injury, and it probably took a toll on him playing two high-pressure matches on the same day.
By Indian Sports News Network