The Delhi Acers beat the Mumbai Rickets 4-3 in the final of the 2016 Premier Badminton League in front of their home fans in the capital to lift the inaugural edition of the competition.
Here’s how all the action unfolded:
1.Mixed Doubles: Akshay Dewalkar/Gabrielle Adcock(DDA) vs Vladimir Ivanov/Kamilla Juhl(MR)
The opening game saw both pair win 2 out of their opening 4 points before Rockets pair went 4-2 up before a fast smash attacking the body from Ivanov ensured that they went 8-5 up at the interval.
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It didn't help the Acer cause that they made hit several shots on to their own net and that meant that the lead continued to rise and eventually, the pair of Ivanov and Juhl clinched the game 15-6.
The Acers duo needed a good opening to the second game and they got that when Dewalkar and Adcock went 3-1 up early in the game. However, Ivanov and Juhl made a fine comeback winning three points to go 4-3 up. However, Dewalkar and Adcock regained the lead soon enough, winning 5 out of the next 6 points to go 8-4 up at the break.
However, the other side of the interval saw the Rockers fight back and courtesy some fine net play and poor errors from Acers clinched 7 out of the next 8 points to 12-9 up. It didn't take too much after that for the Rockets duo to seal the game 15-12 and get their side off to a positive start.
Final Scoreline- Vladimir Ivanov/Kamilla Juhl beat Akshay Dewalkar/Gabrielle Adcock 15-6 15-12
2.Men’s Singles: Tommy Sugiarto(DA) vs HS Prannoy(MR)
It was Sugiarto who got off the blocks quickly, taking a 3-1 lead but the Indian made a good comeback, winning 3 out of the next 5 points to make it 4-5. However, a shot straight into his own net didn't help Prannoy’s cause and he trailed his Indonesian opponent 8-5 at the break.
The other side of the break saw te Indian make a superb comeback as he won 4 out of the next 5 points to level the score at 9-9. It was a real tight affair after that as both players refused to give an inch away, but at the 11-13 mark, it was the Indian who went ahead as he combined good smashes with fine net play to win 2 out of the next 3 points to seal the game 15-12.
Requiring a comeback to stay in the hunt, the Indonesian started the second gam positively, taking a 3-0 lead and despite Prannoy showing glimpses of some good play, extended that advantage to 8-3 at the break. The domination continued at the other side of the break as well as Sugiarto seemed to have regained his mojo and he sealed the game 15-9.
The decider began on a close note but at the 3-3 mark, it was Sugiarto who went in front despite an enthralling rally, clinching 5 points straight to go 8-3 up. The situation only got worse after that for the Rockets as Sugiarto totally dominated proceedings, to win the game 15-8.
Final Scoreline- Tommy Sugiarto beat HS Prannoy 15-12 9-15 15-8
3.Men’s Doubles: Tan Heong/Koon Kien Keat(DA) vs Mathias Boe/Vladimir Ivanov(MR)
The opening game began on an even note as both pairs won 4 out of their opening 8 points, but at that point, the Acers raced away with advantage and helped by a few errors from Bow and Ivanov went into the break with an 8-5 advantage.The other side of the break saw the Rockets pair made a fine comeback as they clinched 4 out of the next 5 points to reduce the deficit to 1.
However, the Acers further strengthened their lead after that, winning 4 out of the next 6 points to go 14-12 up but Boe and Ivanov made a fantastic comeback to first level the score at 14-14 before clinching the game in dramatic fashion 15-14.
The second game began with Acers pair taking a 4-1 lead but at the 5-1 mark, Boe and Ivanov made a spirited comeback to level the score at 5-5. It was a thrilling affair after that and at the 7-7 mark, thanks to a service fault from Ivanov, the Acers went 8-7 in front.
The other side of the break saw the duo of Heong and Keat further extend their lead and thanks to a straight hit from Ivanov into his own net, clinched the game 15-10.
