Hyderabad girl Gayatri Gopichand Pullela defeated statemate Samiya Imad Farooqui to clinch gold in the Under 15 girls singles category and later paired up with Samiya to stand atop the podium in the Under 15 girls doubles section of the Pembangunan Jaya Raya International Junior Grand Prix badminton tournament played in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The girls singles final was tight as Gayatri and Samiya won a game each. However, the former was in no mood to let go of her chances and won the decider to take the match with a 21-11, 18-21, 21-16 scoreline.
The girls doubles final brought more joy to the Indian camp as both the U-15 singles finalists combined well to script a comfortable victory over the Indonesian pair of Kelly Larissa and Shelandry Vyola 21-17, 21-15.
Kavipriya Selvam was the other girl who came good. She won the bronze in the singles as well as doubles categories in the U-15 section. Meghana Reddy was her doubles partner.
Earlier in the doubles semifinals, Samiya and Gayatri dished out emphatic performances to edge out the hosts pair comprising Dea Riska Putri Hapsari and Anyza Velda Syafira 21-16, 21-12.
Meanwhile in the other semi, it was curtains for Meghana and Kavipriya who lost in the straight games to Kelly & Shelandry of Indonesia 16-21, 18-21.
In the singles semifinal, fourth seeded Gayatri was all guns blazing against Indonesia’s Puspitanaya Effendi Nadelita who could barely fancy her chances as she was brushed aside 12-21, 11-21. Meanwhile, Samiya had to toil hard. After losing the first game 15-21 to counterpart Kavipriya, Samiya bounced back to take the match away from her rival by winning back-to-back games 21-13, 21-16.
However the Indian U-15 boys had a disappointing outing in both the singles and doubles categories. The boys from Deccan region, Pranav Rao Gandham & Sai Vishnu Pullela had a successful campaign for three rounds before faltering in the quarterfinals of the doubles section. Pranav & Sai lost to Renandho Mega Pamungkas and Imad Wirawan 10-21, 19-21.
In the singles U-15, Sai lost to Indonesia’s Kafi Raditya Pandika 13-21, 11-21 in the first round.
But it was Vikas Yadav, who fought tooth and nail to punch his way into the singles semifinal where he slipped against fifth seeded Mawardi Putra Damas to settle for a bronze medal. The final scores read 17-21, 21-18, 17-21. Earlier in the quarters, Vikas overpowered Malaysia’s Yaw Pin Ng 21-23, 21-8, 21-13.
Selected results
Girls U-15 singles final: Gayatri Gopichand Pullela (India, 4) bt Samiya Imad Farooqui (India, 1) 21-11, 18-21, 21-16. Semifinals: Gayatri bt Puspitanaya Effendi Nadelita (Indonesia) 21-12, 21-11; Samiya bt Kavipriya Selvam (India) 15-21, 21-13, 21-16. Quarterfinals: Gayatri bt Viyananda Bintang Racketa (Indonesia, 12) 21-16, 21-14; Samiya bt Tasnim Mir (India) 21-16, 21-18; Kavipriya bt Siti Sarah Azzahra (3, Indonesia) 21-18, 21-11. Third round: Gayatri bt Fatikha Isauraya (Indonesia) 21-4, 21-12; Samiya bt Maria Veronica Ngadien Prawisti (Indonesia) 21-16, 21-16; Kavipriya bt Maulia Syauki Ihsani (Indonesia, 14) 21-10, 21-16. Second round: Gayatri bt Deswanti Hujansih Nurtertiati (Indonesia) 21-12, 21-17; Samiya bt Tasya Farahnailah (Indonesia) 21-9, 16-21, 21-19; Kavipriya bt Bilqis Prasista (Indonesia, 8) 14-21, 21-11, 21-12. First round: Gayatri bt Rifa Siti Nabila (Indonesia) 21-9, 21-11; Samiya bt Shofi Apprilia Argyanti (Indonesia) 21-12, 21-10; Kavipriya bt Meilani Wigyantari (Indonesia) 21-16, 21-18.
n Girls U-15 doubles final: Samiya Imad Farooqui (India, 2)/ Gayatri Gopichand Pullela (India) bt Kelly Larissa (Indonesia, 1)/ Shelandry Vyola (Indonesia) 21-17, 21 15. Semifinals: Samiya/ Gayatri bt Dea Riska Putri Hapsari (Indonesia, 3)/ Anyza Velda Syafira (Indonesia) 21-16, 21-12; Meghana Reddy Mareddy/ Kavipriya Selvam (India) lost to Kelly Larissa/ Shelandry Vyola 16-21, 18-21. Quarterfinals: Samiya/ Gayatri bt Chao Ting-Yu (Chinese Taipei)/ Lee Yu-Hsuan (Chinese Taipei) 21-17, 21-12; Meghana Reddy/ Kavipriya bt Yu Jung Kim (Korea)/ Seol Won Lee (Korea) 15-21, 21-14, 21-12. Second round: Samiya/ Gayatri bt Shiva Nabila Putri (Indonesia)/ Febi Setianingrum (Indonesia) 21-15, 21 13; Meghana Reddy/ Kavipriya bt Rifa Siti Nabila (4, Indonesia)/ Windy Aulia Putri (Indonesia) 21-11, 21-10. First round: Samiya/ Gayatri get bye; Meghana Reddy/ Kavipriya bt Kenaya Marcella (Indonesia)/ Sakira Salsabila (Indonesia) 21-9, 21 12.
n Boys U-15 singles semifinals: Vikas Yadav (India) bt Mawardi Putra Damas (Indonesia, 5) 17-21, 21-18, 17-21. Quarterfinal: Vikas bt Yaw Pin Ng (Malaysia) 21-23, 21-8, 21 13. Fourth round: Vikas bt Jeng Hon Chia (Malaysia) 21-11, 21-7. Third round: Vikas bt Aria Dinata (Indonesia, 12) 21-15, 11-8 retired. Second round: Vikas bt Gabriel Dandi Yares (Indonesia) 25-23, 21-10. First round: Vikas bt Muhammad Faris Andriansyah (Indonesia) 21-12, 21-9; Kafi Raditya Pandika (Indonesia) bt Sai Vishnu Pullela (India) 21-13, 21-11.
n Boys U-15 doubles quarterfinals: Pranav Rao Gandham/ Sai Vishnu Pullela (India) lost to Renandho Mega Pamungkas/ Imam Wirawan 10-21, 19-21. Third round: Pranav/ Sai Vishnu bt Yun Seong An/ Tae Bin Yoo (Korea) 23-21, 17-21, 21-16. Second round: Pranav/ Sai Vishnu bt Yaw Pin Ng/ Zhen Yi Ong (Malaysia) 12-21, 21-17, 22-20. First round: Pranav/ Sai Vishnu bt M. Rifqy Putra Darmawan/ Muhammad Fachmi Ridho’I (Indonesia) 21-12, 21-14.
