Goemkarponn Desk
PEDDEM: The Yonex-Sunrise All India Sub Junior (U15 and U17) Badminton Ranking Tournament 2024 concluded with resounding success at the multipurpose stadium in Peddem, Goa. The eight-day event, organized by the Goa Badminton Association (GBA) under the aegis of the Badminton Association of India (BAI) and in collaboration with the Sports Authority of Goa, showcased some of the best young badminton talent from across India.
The tournament saw participation from around 2000 players competing in 10 different events across singles, doubles, and mixed doubles categories in the U15 and U17 age groups. The prestigious event served as a selection tournament for the Badminton Association of India’s Centre of Excellence in Guwahati, aimed at identifying and nurturing the next generation of badminton stars.
Tanvi Patri from Odisha emerged as a standout performer, clinching titles in both the Girls Singles U15 and U17 categories. In the Girls Singles U15 final, second-seeded Tanvi Patri displayed exceptional skill and dominance to defeat top seed Hithaishree L. Rajaiah from Karnataka with a score of 21-9, 21-10. Tanvi continued her impressive form in the U17 category, overcoming Rishika Nandi from Delhi in a thrilling three-set match, finishing 21-14, 19-21, 21-15.
Other notable results include Shashank Vanamala from Telangana defeating Neeraj Nair P.S. from Tamil Nadu 21-16, 21-15 in the Boys Singles U15, and top-seed Gnana Dattu T.T. from Karnataka triumphing over Suryaksh Rawat from Uttarakhand 21-13, 21-14 in the Boys Singles U17. In doubles, Aaradhya Reddy Hanumaiah Gari and Avni Reddy Hanumaiah Gari from Maharashtra claimed victory in the Girls Doubles U15, defeating Vijaya Tejashwini Dantuluri (AP) and Shreya Tripathi (Delhi) 21-8, 21-15. Shashwat Chaudhary and Shaurya Chaudhary from Delhi emerged victorious in the Boys Doubles U15, overcoming Tanish Choksi and Bhashy Pathak from Gujarat 16-21, 21-10, 21-14.
In Boys Doubles U17, Nishchal Chand and Suryaksh Rawat from Uttarakhand caused an upset by defeating top seeds Bjorn Jaison and Aathish Sreenivas P.V. from Kerala 17-21, 22-20, 21-19. In the mixed doubles categories, Kaveyugan K. A. and Anushkaa Jennifer A. S. from Tamil Nadu won the U15 title, defeating Vedant Pahwa and Gauri Kalla from Haryana 21-17, 21-17. In the U17 category, Bornil Akash Changmai and Shantipriya Hazarika from Assam triumphed over Manish S. Reddy and Deepak Raj Aditi from Karnataka 21-17, 21-13. In girls doubles U17, Aanya Bisht / Angel Punera [2] from Uttarakhand defeated Diya Bheemaiah B. (KTK) / Baruni Parshwal [4] (Haryana) 21-10, 21-14.
The closing ceremony was graced by several dignitaries, including Sekhar Biswas (Chairman – Tournament Committee, BAI), Omar Rashid (Convenor – Tournament Committee, BAI), Prabhakar Rao (Observer, BAI), Manoj Patil (President, GBA), Praveen Shenoy (Secretary, GBA), Sanjay Bhobe (Treasurer, GBA), Sandeep Heble (Organizing Secretary), and Vinayak Kamat (Technical Advisor), alongside the GBA Executive Committee members.
Manoj Patil, President of the Goa Badminton Association, remarked, “Goa offers world-class venues such as the multipurpose stadium at Peddem, where this tournament was played on 18 courts. This is one of the few venues in India capable of hosting a large number of matches simultaneously. With nearly 2000 participants and over 3200 entries, this was one of the biggest events in the Badminton Association of India’s calendar. In line with the Honourable Chief Minister’s vision to promote Goa as a premier sports destination which can boost tourism, we are keen to host more national and even international badminton tournaments in Goa in the near future, and raise the bar of the game in Goa. Congratulations to all the winners.”
