Saneeth, Tasnim clinch men and women singles titles in VV Natu Memorial badminton tournament

Pune, Jul 14 (PTI) Karnataka’s Saneeth DS and Gujarat’s Tasnim Mir notched up comfortable wins over their respective opponents to secure the men’s and women’s singles titles in the Yonex-Sunrise VV Natu Memorial All India Senior Ranking badminton tournament here on Sunday.

Third seed Saneeth ended the dream run of qualifier Tushar Suveer 21-15, 21-12 in a 44-minute clash between two Karnataka players in the men’s final, while Tasnim got the better of Devika, who won the last ranking meet in Bengaluru, 21-16, 21-13.

While the youngsters ruled the singles categories, the experienced Aarthi Sara Sunil showed that she is still a force to reckon with, clinching the women’s doubles crown in the company of VS Varshini.

The top seeds came from a game down to beat Karnataka’s former national champions Shikha Gautam and Ashwini Bhat K 17-21, 22-20, 21-18 in 53 minutes.

Shikha, however, stood atop the mixed doubles podium as she and Nitin Kumar, seeded second, defeated Dhruv Rawat and Radhika Sharma 15-21, 21-14, 21-17 in the final.

Rawat clinched the men’s doubles crown, pairing up with Assam’s Suraj Goala. The top seeds defeated Akshan Shetty and Ravikrishna PS 21-15, 22-20 in 40 minutes.

Results:

Men’s singles: Saneeth DS bt Tushar Suveer 21-15, 21-12

Women’s singles: Tasnim Mir bt Devika Sihag 21-16, 21-13

Men’s doubles: Suraj Goala/Dhruv Rawat bt Ravikrishna PS/Akshan Shetty 21-15, 22-20

Women’s doubles: Aarthi Sara Sunil/VS Varshini bt Shikha Gautam/Ashwini Bhat K 17-21, 22-20, 21-18

Mixed doubles: Nitin Kumar/Shikha Gautam bt Dhruv Rawat/Radhika Sharma 15-21, 21-14, 21-17.