Thomas and Uber Cup: After Saina Nehwal's Injury, India win 3-2 against Spain
In a shaky start to the Uber Cup tie, Team India won 3-2 against a resilient Spanish side on Sunday, in Aarhus, Denmark. Seasoned shuttler Saina Nehwal picked up an injury in the first match, which resulted in an early blow for India, but the youngsters won tie for India in the upcoming matches.
In what should have been a comfortable win for the Indian team, the women shuttlers won 3-2 against Spain in the Group B clash against Spain at the 2020 Uber Cup in Aarhus, Denmark on Sunday. Youngsters Malvika Bansod and Aditi Bhatt won their singles matches, while the doubles pair of Tanisha Crasto/Rutuparna Panda won the doubles tie.
Veteran Saina Nehwal and the experienced team of Ashwini Ponnappa/N Sikki Reddy lost their respective matches. In the first match of the day for India,  Nehwal lost the first game 20-22 against Spanish Clara Azurmendi, before retiring hurt from the match. Later the 20-year-old Malvika Bansod got India level at 1-1 with a swift 21-13, 21-15 win over Beatriz Corrales.
Next up, the pair of Tanisha Crasto/Rutuparna Panda scored a dominating 21-10, 21-8 win over Paula Lopez/Lorena Usle. Later, Aditi Bhatt clinched the tie 3-1 for India with a 21-16, 21-14 victory over Ania Setien. Ashwini Ponnappa/N Sikki Reddy were beaten 18-21, 21-14, 17-21 by Clara Azurmendi/Beatriz Corrales in the last match of the day.Â
Now Team India will next play Scotland on Tuesday, and a win there would all but seal their berth in the playoffs.
Indian men's team script 5-0 win over the Netherlands
The Indian men’s team scripted a comfortable 5-0 victory over the Netherlands in their opening match of the ongoing 2021 Thomas Cup in Aarhus, Denmark, on Sunday.Â
India’s Kidambi Srikanth started off on a positive note, having defeated Joran Kweekel with scores of 21-12, 21-14 in the first singles tie. Following which, the men’s doubles pair of Chirag Shetty/Satwiksairaj Rankireddy ran over the Ruben Jille/Ties van der Lecq with scores of 21-19, 21-12 to give India a 2-0 lead in the match.
Meanwhile, world championships bronze medallist B Sai Praneeth ensured India’s win with a clinical performance to topple Robin Mesman in the second singles. The duo of MR Arjun/Dhruv Kapila made it 4-0 for India with a win over Andy Buijk/Brian Wassnik.
Sameer Verma signed off with a dominating victory over Gijs Duijs, with the final scores reading 21-6, 21-11. The Indian team will be up against Tahiti in their next match, on Tuesday.