BWF Thomas and Uber Cup 2024: Indian teams storm into quarterfinals
Indian men’s team beat England 5-0 in Thomas Cup while women overcome Singapore 4-1 in Uber Cup to seal last-eight berth
India badminton men’s and women’s teams stormed into the quarter-finals of the BWF Thomas and Uber Cup 2024 on Monday. The men’s team beat England 5-0 in their Thomas Cup Group C match while the Indian women’s team beat Singapore 4-1 in their Uber Cup Group A match.
The Indian men’s team will face Indonesia to decide the group winner while the women’s team will face China in their last group match.
World No. 9 HS Prannoy gave India a winning start with a 21-15, 21-15 victory over Harry Huang while Asian Games gold medallists Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty overcame some stuttering moments to beat England’s Ben Lane and Sean Vendy 21-17, 19-21, 21-15.
With Lakshya Sen being rested for the tie, the onus was on Kidambi Srikanth to seal the win for India and the Hyderabad-based shuttler sealed the deal with a 21-16, 21-11 win over Nadeem Dalvi.
Speaking to the media after the match, Prannoy said the winning start he gave against England boosted his confidence. “The idea today was to be as clinical as possible because we saw against Thailand that one result here and there could have affected us. Personally, I am happy that I gave the team a winning start as it also helps my confidence going forward,” Prannoy said.
Satwiksairaj said the conditions were quite difficult and he was happy to find a way to help India win both their matches so far. “Things were not going our way always and it’s always difficult to play a left-right combination as we hardly practise against such combinations in India. But we hung in there and that will help us ahead in the tournament,” Satwik opined.
The second doubles combination of MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila and World No. 36 Kiran George, playing the third singles, won their respective matches to complete the scoreline.
Results: India bt England 5-0 (HS Prannoy bt Harry Huang 21-15, 21-15; Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty bt Ben Lane/Sean Vendy 21-17, 19-21, 21-15; Kidambi Srikanth bt Nadeem Dalvi 21-16, 21-11; MR Arjun/Dhruv Kapila bt Rory Easton/Alex Green 21-17, 21-19; Kiran George bt Cholan Kayan 21-18, 21-12)