Sport - Badminton   

Maiden title for Guru Sai Dutt

JAGTIAL: R.M.V. Guru Sai Dutt won his maiden men’s singles title, while defending champion, J. Sruthi, warded off a spirited challenge from Sikki Reddy to retain the women’s title in the AP Senior badminton championship at the Town Club Indoor Stadium here on Sunday.

Sai Dutt got the better of international and the top-seeded, J.B.S. Vidyadhar, 21-18, 21-18, while Sruthi defeated Sikki 21-19, 15-21, 21-19 in the women’s singles.

For Sai Dutt, it was a significant victory against a player with whom he has been engaged in a running battle off the court of late in the wake of allegations that he allegedly took performance enhancement drugs in a major ranking tournament early this year.

When Vidyadhar took a 13-7 lead with a combination of net dribbles and down the line smashes, it looked as if he was on song. But once Sai Dutt played a vastly superior and controlled game and also cut down his negatives, he looked the better player.

Vidyadhar conceded too many easy points in the crucial stages of the first game to lose it. Sai Dutt seemed to be in control in the second game, which began after a 20-minute break due to lights problem, holding a comfortable lead till 13-10.

Then Vidyadhar changed gears with his trademark strokes down the centre to rattle his young opponent. To his credit, Sai Dutt regained composure and won the upper hand with a splendid net game and some big strokes down the line. Suddenly, Vidyadhar looked out of sorts and his misery compounded when he conceded too many easy points at the net to finish a disappointing loser.

In the women’s final, Sikki was aggressive with powerful strokes, while Sruthi relied more on drop shots and the odd cross-court return. But it was obvious right through that the one who committed fewer mistakes would emerge the winner. That was what Sruthi did in the decider after trailing 11-16. She essayed some excellent net dribbles and impressive cross-court forehand returns to win the title and deny Sikki what could have been otherwise a double.

The results: Men: Singles: Final: R.M.V. Guru Sai Dutt bt J.B.S. Vidyadhar 21-18, 21-18. Semifinals: Vidyadhar bt B. Kiran Kumar 21-16, 21-19; Sai Dutt bt Vinay Kumar Reddy 12-21, 21-14, 21-14.

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