Local favourite Surya Charishma Tamiri and the experienced Shruti Mundada caused upsets by defeating the top two seeds in straight games, advancing to the semifinals of the Senior National Badminton Championships.
Surya Charishma’s Victory
Surya Charishma showcased her strength by overpowering top seed Unnati Hooda, winning the quarterfinals 21-12, 21-15 in just 36 minutes. Shruti Mundada followed suit, defeating second seed and former national champion Anupama Upadhyaya 22-20, 21-12 in 39 minutes.
In the semifinals, Surya Charishma will face 18-year-old Rakshita Sree, who made a comeback after dropping a game to beat world junior championships silver medallist Tanvi Sharma 16-21, 21-14, 21-18.
Men’s Singles Updates
In the men’s singles, top seed Kiran George faced a tough match against 11th seed Rounak Chauhan but eventually triumphed 21-18, 21-18 in 41 minutes. He will meet 2024 Odisha Open champion Rithvik Sanjeevi S, who secured a win over K Sathish Kumar with a score of 21-13, 22-20 in another quarterfinal.
The other semifinal will feature second seed M Tharun against unseeded Bharat Raghav. Tharun defeated Manraj Singh 21-13, 22-20, while Bharat outperformed Ginpaul Sonna 21-17, 21-13.
Women’s Doubles Shakeup
In women’s doubles, top seeds Rutuparna and Swetaparna Panda were knocked out in the pre-quarterfinal stage by Riduvarshini Ramasamy and Sania Sikkandar, who won 21-16, 21-19.
Juniors Maintain Momentum
Earlier, India’s upcoming juniors Tanvi Sharma, Rounak Chauhan, and Tanvi Patri continued their impressive performance in the championships on Thursday, registering convincing wins to reach the quarterfinals.
World junior championships silver medallist Tanvi Sharma overcame 10th seed Devika Sihag, winning 21-11, 10-21, 21-10, while Patri defeated Parul Choudhary 21-14, 21-17 in the women’s singles pre-quarterfinals.
Tanvi Sharma will next face Rakshita Sree, while Patri is set to battle experienced player Aakarshi Kashyap, who defeated third seed Anmol Kharb 21-18, 21-18.
Top seed Unnati Hooda and second seed Anupama Upadhyaya also secured their quarterfinal spots with contrasting victories. Unnati came back from a game down to beat M Meghana Reddy 19-21, 21-14, 21-12, while Anupama dominated Anvi Rathore 21-13, 21-5.