Riki Takei of Japan overcame India’s Sathish Kumar Karunakaran, 21-9, 20-22, 22-20, in a sensational men’s singles semi-final at the Bahrain Keraleeya Samajam (BKS) last night to enter the final of the 2023 Al Sharif Group Bahrain International Challenge Badminton Tournament.
When the match began, it looked like the diminutive Japanese player would run away with the game after he easily took the first set 21-9.
But Karunakaran fought back in the second set, taking an 11-5 lead before extending it to 16-6.
That set the stage for a most remarkable passage of play with Karunakaran managing only four points in the time it took Takei to rack up 14 points, resulting in the score being tied at 20-20.
The Indian, then, managed to scramble the two points he needed to win the set 22-20, and carried that momentum into the third set which he soon led 10-7.
The lead didn’t last for long, however, as Takei managed to draw level at 12-12 but Karunakaran edged three points ahead again, at 15-12.
But Takei drew level again, at 15-15 and, again, at 17-17, before Karunakaran served for the match, at 20-19.
Incredibly, Takei saved the match point to tie the score again, at 20-20, before taking the next two points to win the match, spinning around and pumping his fist at his coach as soon he did.
Takei will now play compatriot Minoru Koga who beat India’s Meiraba Luwang Maisnam 21-17, 21-18, in the other men’s singles semi-final, in today’s final.
Meanwhile, China’s Wu Luo Yu, who beat compatriot Dai Wang 21-15, 21-17, in the second women’s singles semi-final, will play Chen Lu – another Chinese player who defeated India’s Gadde Ruthvika Shivani 21-10, 21-12 in the earlier semi-final – in the final today.
A packed BKS hall was treated to some superb badminton in the first men’s doubles semi-final with Thailand’s Sirawit Sothon and Natthapat Trinkajee putting up fine resistance before eventually going down to the Japanese pair of Kazuki Shibata and Naoki Yamada, who won the three-set encounter 21-16, 18-21, 21-13.
Shibata and Yamada will now play the Indian pair of Krishna Prasad Garaga and Sai Pratheek – who upset China’s Xie Hao Nan and Zeng Wei Han 16-21, 21-15, 21-19, in the other men’s doubles semi-final – in the final that will also take place today.
Meanwhile, Bulgarian sisters Gabriela and Stefani Stoeva upset the highly-fancied Chinese pair of Wang Ting Ge and Wang Yi Duo 21-15, 21-15, in their women’s doubles semi-final to set up a date in the final with Japan’s Kolona Ishikawa and Mio Konegawa, who easily defeated another pair of sisters, India’s Nikki and Nishu Rapria 21-6, 21-5, in the earlier semi-final.
And, in the mixed doubles, the top-seeded English husband-and-wife pairing of Jenny and Gregory Mairs was made to work hard for their 21-17, 19-21, 21-14, win over China’s Ma Xi Xiang and Wu Meng Ying.
The Mairs will play China’s Zhou Zhi Hong and Yang Jia Yi, who beat the German mixed-doubles pair of Jones Ralfy Jansen and Thuc Phuong Nguyen 21-18, 21-10, in the first semi-final, in the final.
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