PBL 2016: Srikanth’s efforts in vain as Mumbai Rockets register second victory

The match got underway with the women’s singles tie between Chinese players, Han Li and Suo Di taking on each other. Suo Di showcased an array of her skills to defeat her rival 15-9, 11-15, 15-7 to guide Bengaluru to a winning start to the match.

Mumbai came roaring back into the match by winning the trump match in the men’s doubles tie. Mathias Boe and Vladmir Ivanov defeated Hoon Thien How and Lim Khim Wa 15-13, 15-11 to put Mumbai Rockets into a 2-1 lead.

Gurusaidutt increased Mumbai’s lead to 3-1 after the third tie of the day by defeating Anand Pawar 15-7, 15-13 in the men’s singles tie.

The crucial encounter of the evening came in the men’s singles tie between H S Prannoy and Kidambi Srikanth. Trailing 1-3 in the match, Bengaluru banked their hopes on star player Srikanth and called for a trump match in search of a win. World No. 9 Srikanth led the match from the start as he raced to an 8-5 lead at the break. He continued his domination after the break to pocket the first set 15-9 against Prannoy, who is ranked 20 in the World.

The second set proved to be a repeat of the first as Srikanth outclassed his rival with an impressive display of badminton. After leading 8-3 at the break, Srikanth, who beat Lee Chong Wei in the last match, added another victory to his name by winning the second set 15-8.

With the scores tied at 3-3, the mixed doubles tie proved to be the deciding tie of the match. Vladmir Ivanov and Liu Zi Die swung the match in favour of Mumbai by defeating the Bengaluru pair of Robert Blair and Ashwini Ponnappa 15-12, 11-15, 15-9.

Mumbai Rockets vs Bengaluru Top Guns 4-3

1. Women’s Singles: Han Li vs Suo Di 9-15, 15-11, 7-15

2. Men’s Doubles: Mathias Boe/Vladimir Ivanov* vs Hoon Thien How/Lim Khim Wa 15-13, 15-11

3. Men’ Singles: R M V Gurusaidutt vs Anand Pawar 15-7, 15-13

4. Men’s Singles: H S Prannoy vs Srikanth Kidambi* 9-15, 8-15

5. Mixed Doubles: Vladimir Ivanov/Liu Zi Die vs Robert Blair/Ashwini Ponnappa 15-12, 11-15, 15-9

(* signifies trump match)