Women’s top seed Unnati Hooda, world junior championships silver medallists Tanvi Sharma, the experienced Aakarshi Kashyap and upcoming junior Rounak Chauhan posted convincing victories to advance in the 87th Senior National Badminton Championships in Vijayawada on Wednesday.
Unnati, who had a bye in the first round, hammered wildcard entrant Akanksha Matte 21-8, 21-18 while Tanvi began her campaign with a 21-10, 21-14 win over Asian U-15 girls singles gold medallist Shaina Manimuthu.
Also advancing to the next round were the experienced Aakarshi, who defeated Asian U-17 championships silver medallist Lakshya Rajesh 21-7, 21-9 while Ashmita Chaliha got the better of Kavya Marvaniya 21-7, 21-11.
16th seed Purva Barve was the only seeded player to bite the dust as she went down 21-19, 17-21, 18-21 against M Meghana Reddy in the round of 64.
In the men’s singles event, 11th seed Chauhan defeated Ranveer Singh 21-9, 21-13 while 12th seed D S Saneeth beat Ankit Mondal 21-7, 21-11 to book their spots in the next round.
16th seed and Guwahati Masters Super 100 champions Sanskar Saraswat also began his campaign in style with a 21-11, 21-13 win over Shikhar Rallan.
Earlier, state home minister Vangalapudi Anitha inaugurated the championship. She lauded the efforts of the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SAAP), the AP Badminton Association (APBA), and the Badminton Association of India (BAI) for bringing this prestigious national event to Vijayawada.
She also applauded the visionary steps of the state chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu. She said hosting such events stands on par with Andhra Pradesh’s developmental activities and reflects the state’s commitment to progress and excellence.
The chief guest and dignitaries were introduced to all participating teams, and in a spirited moment, Anitha joined officials on court for a friendly game. The Andhra Pradesh women’s team was specially lauded for securing the silver medal, a proud achievement for the state.
