BWF World C’ships: Dhruv-Tanisha’s campaign ends in pre-quarters

New Delhi, Aug 20 (IANS) India’s Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto’s run at the BWF World Championships came to an end in the Round of 16 on Thursday, with the 15th-seeded mixed doubles pair going down to China’s Chen Fang and Guo Xinwa at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.

Dhruv and Tanisha, who had entered the pre-quarterfinals after a comfortable opening-round victory, could not reproduce that performance against the Chinese combination. Chen and Guo controlled the contest to secure a straight-game 21-11, 21-11 win, bringing the Indian pair’s campaign to an end.

The defeat came a day after the duo had made an encouraging start to their World Championships campaign. After receiving a first-round bye, the Indians faced Macau’s Leong Iok Chong and Ng Weng Chi and made short work of the contest to book their place in the last 16.

That victory had also made Dhruv and Tanisha India’s final representatives in the mixed doubles draw. Their exit means the country has no pair left in the discipline.

Rohan Kapoor and Ruthvika Shivani Gadde had earlier suffered a narrow defeat against Canada’s Jonathan Bing Tsan Lai and Crystal Lai. The Indian pair won the opening game 22-20 but could not maintain their advantage, eventually losing 19-21, 17-21 in a closely fought contest.

Ashith Surya and Amrutha Pramuthesh also bowed out after being pushed to the limit by Turkey’s Emre Sonmez and Yasemen Bektas. The Turkish pair prevailed 21-16, 29-30, 24-22 in a match that featured two games decided well beyond the usual finishing score.

Dhruv and Tanisha had therefore carried India’s last hopes in mixed doubles into the Round of 16, but their defeat against Chen and Guo brought the country’s campaign in the discipline to a close.

–IANS

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