Frustration boils over for Aussie badminton duo

Australia's He Tian Tang and Kate Wilson-Smith have been relegated to scrapping for Commonwealth Games bronze after losing their women's doubles semi-final in an entertaining three-game encounter.

The duo came out firing against the No.2 seeds, India's Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Machimanda to take the first game, but stumbled as the pressure began to take its toll.

With India spurred on by a vociferous local crowd, the Australian veterans finally relented, losing 12-21 21-13 21-11 at the Siri Fort Sports Complex on Tuesday.

Advertisement: Story continues below

Tian Tang and Wilson-Smith, who are the last remaining Aussies in the competition, have one more chance to bring home a medal and end a 12-year Commonwealth Games drought for Australian badminton.

Wilson-Smith said the loss would take some figuring out but she was confident the pair would be able to refocus in time for the bronze medal play-off.

Asked where their Indian rivals had them beat, the obviously frustrated four-time Games veteran replied: "Sorry, you're not asking me anything I can talk about.

"I don't know yet, we only just lost.

Saina and Co. in badminton quarterfinals

NEW DELHI: Title favourite Saina Nehwal stormed into the quarterfinals as Indian shuttlers continued their winning run in the badminton individual events in the Commonwealth Games here on Monday

Top seed Saina spanked Nigerian Caroline Black 21-0 21-2, while Aditi beat Kirsty Gilmour of Scotland 21-11 21-17 in 24 minutes in women's singles.

Sixth seed P Kashyap kept his hopes of a maiden medal alive by beating Kieran Merrilees of Scotland 21-12 21-15, while third seed Chetan Anand thrashed Jamie Van Hooijdonk 21-8 21-2 in men's singles pre-quarterfinals here.

Jwala Gutta and V Diju beat fellow Indian pair of Rupesh Kumar and Ashwini Ponnappa 15-21 21-18 21-16 in a 25-minute battle but it was all over for Sanave Thomas and Aparna Balan as they lost 15-21 18-21 to Chris Adcock and Gabby White.

World number three Saina was too hot to handle for Caroline Black and the Northern Ireland shuttler failed to put up any fight against the Indian, going down 0-21 2-21 in the pre-quarterfinals match.

The pressure of playing the world number three got to Black as all her returns went either outside or to the nets as she drew a blank in the first game.

In the second game too, she could manage just two points, which was cheered aloud by the crowd.

"It was an easy match. She was very nervous. I can understand it is difficult to for her to play against me. I tried to play some rallies in the second game but she was hitting the shuttles out," Saina said after the match.

Aditi had a stroll in the park in the first game but in the second she looked edgy and the Pune girl admitted that she needs to be more consistent if she has to realise her dream of a medal here.

"I have not been attacking enough today. I need to be more aggressive and play more consistently. I lost concentration in between games but otherwise I played well," she said.

P Kashyap played an array of strokes and looked in good touch during his straight-game victory over Merrilees.

"I played fast and quick today. My flicks were coming good and I was relaxed," he said. 

NZ men break into badminton quarterfinals

Skybadminton

Just two New Zealand doubles combinations remain alive at the Commonwealth Games after booking quarterfinal berths today.

Straight set wins for men Henry Tam and Oliver Leydon-Davis and women Donna Haliday and Danielle Barry takes them through to last-eighth matches tonight.

Tam and Leydon-Davis were untroubled in beating Barbados combination Dakeil Thorpe and Nicolas Reifer 21-8 21-14 but that was to change tonight, when they are drawn to face the world No 1 ranked men's doubles pair of Kien Keat Koo and Boon Heong Tan, of Malaysia.

Fourth seeds Haliday and Barry have a more winnable match, against Australians He Tian Tang and Kate Wilson-Smith after they accounted for Guernsey's Elena Johnson and Gayle Lloyd 21-13 21-15 in 20 minutes.

The three other New Zealand hopefuls were eliminated today.

In the women's singles, Michelle Chan lost her third-round match 21-11 21-9 to Scottish third seed Susan Egelstaff before Anna Rankin also exited, beaten 21-14 21-13 by England's Liz Cann.

Scotland inflicted more pain on the New Zealanders when mixed duo Tam and Haliday succumbed in a 39-minute struggle 18-21 21-6 21-17 to Watson Briggs and Imogen Bankier.

Aussies make last eight in badminton

AAp To skybadminton

Both of Australia's women's doubles badminton teams have won through to quarter-finals on Monday, boosting a solid team effort at the Delhi Commonwealth Games.

Veterans He Tian Tang and Kate Wilson-Smith beat Canada's Michelle Li and Alex Bruce 21-19 21-9 at the Siri Fort Sports Complex to make it through to the final eight.

And Leanne Choo and Renuga Vithi Veeran defeated India's Aditi Ajay and Aparna Balan to the despair of the home crowd, securing a nail-biting straight sets victory 21-16 23-21.

Advertisement: Story continues below

If both get through their next matches, it guarantees Australia a minimum bronze - what would be its first badminton medal since the 1998 Commonwealth Games.

Earlier, Chia-Chi Huang won her way through to the quarter-finals of the women's singles with an impressive victory over the No.7 seed, Singapore's Ming Tian Fu.

She will play against Scotland's Susan Egelstaff also later on Monday.

The Australian team's male members had less luck, with Jeff Tho losing narrowly in his men's singles match and Glenn Warfe and Ross Smith going down in the men's doubles.

Saina leads Indian pack in quarter finals

Skybadminton Back

Led by world No.3 Saina Nehwal, a host of Indian players moved into the quarter—finals of the individual badminton event Monday, raising hopes of multiple medals from the badminton courts at the Commonwealth Games.

Some of the Indians, however, have run into tough opponents in the next round and it will take some spirited performance from them to get through to the semi-finals.

Top seeded Saina spanked Caroline Black of Northern Ireland 21-0, 21-2 to set up a clash with sixth seeded Canadian Anna Rice, whom the Indian beat in the quarter-finals of the mixed team event.

Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponappa pulled off a fine victory against Malaysian Eei Hui Chin and Woon Khe Wei 15-21, 21-10, 21-16 to advance into the last eight in women’s doubles.

Aditi Mutatkar also moved into the women’s singles quarter-final with a 21-11, 21-17 victory over Scotland’s Kirsty Gilmour. But the Indian now faces second seeded Malaysian Mew Choo Wong.

In men’s singles, Parupalli Kashyap got the better of Kieran Merrilees of Scotland 21-12, 21-5. Kashyap, too, will have a difficult opponent in fourth seeded Mohammad Hafiz Hashim in the quarter-final.

Top ranked Indian and third seed Chetan Anand defeated Jamie Van Hooijdonk of Wales 21-8, 21-2 in another third round match. He will take on England’s Carl Baxter in the evening session for a place in the semis.

Mixed doubles second seeds Jwala Gutta and V. Diju defeated compatriots Rupesh Kumar and Ashwini Ponnappa 15-21, 21-18, 21-16.

The World No.11 Indian pair will take on the awesome Malaysian combination Kien Kit Koo and Ei Hui Chin, who beat the Indians in the final of the mixed team event.

Cheered by the crowd, the second seeded Indian pair of Gutta and Ponappa rallied from a game down to beat the Malaysian pair in 41 minutes.

While Ashwini was at her attacking best, Jwala took charge at the net and changed positions swiftly, at times moving back to play some delectable drop shots to which the Malaysians had no answers.

“It is one of our fine victories. Our combination has been doing well and this will spur us to move ahead,” said Jwala, who not long ago had a successful pairing with Shruti Kurien but then combined with Ashwini.

“We have done well in a short time. She (Ashwini) is an attacking player and she was hitting hard today. My shots were going fine and we are clicking well together.”