Guwahati, Dec 4 (IANS): Men's top seed Priyanshu Rajawat was made to sweat by compatriot Arya Bhivpathki in men’s singles second round while the young Tanvi Sharma packed off seventh seed Tanya Hemanth to advance to the women’s singles pre-quarters in Guwahati Masters Super 100 badminton tournament here on Wednesday.
Rajawat had a scare as he fought back from 11-16 and then saved a game point in the opening game to beat Bhivpathki 22-20, 21-14 in 35 minutes. Tanvi had a comparatively easier time as she defeated Tanya 21-18, 21-14 to advance to the next round. In the paired event, mixed doubles top seeds Satish Kumar Karunakaran and Adya Variyath along with fifth seeds Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto stayed on course for a possible showdown in the quarterfinals.
The top seeds defeated Nithin H.V. and Anagha Pai 21-14, 21-10 while Dhruv and Tanisha got the better of the Chinese combination of Liao Pin Yi and Huang Ke Xin 22-20, 21-19 in the second edition of the competition, organised jointly by the Badminton Association of India and Assam Badminton Association with the view of providing much-needed exposure to young Indian shuttlers.
And just like Tanvi, the up-and-coming youngster Shriyanshi Valishetty also grabbed the opportunity to impress with a 21-19, 21-14 win over Unnati Hooda. Local hope Isharani Baruah, seeded eight, played her heart out against India’s Asian Championship star player Anmol Kharab but ended up on the wrong side of the 21-10, 18-21, 21-18 score line.
In the day’s other matches, Tasnim Mir squandered two match points and then saved two herself before defeating compatriot Ira Sharma 21-13, 19-21, 24-22 in just under an hour. She will now face defending champion Lalinrat Chaiwan of Thailand, who comfortably beat Tanishq MP 21-5, 21-7.