Close affair expected in badminton nationals

PATNA: Winter is never gentle in Patna. It's dry and windy with the sun playing hide and seek. But mercury is set to rise from Wednesday inside Patliputra Sports Complex Indoor Stadium as some of the top shuttlers in the country will slug it out in the 81st Senior National and 72nd Inter Zonal Inter State badminton championships.
The tournament will start with the team events before moving to the individual events a couple of days later.For a sport that has given India a silver and a bronze medal in the Olympics, the presence of HS Prannoy, B Sai Praneeth, Sameer Verma, Arundhati Pantawane and Tanvi Lad will provide some sheen to the competition despite the likes of Saina Nehwal, PV Sindhu and Parupalli Kashyap having pulled out.
Seeded first, Prannoy will be eyeing his maiden National title in men's singles after a disappointing stint in the recently-concluded Syed Modi Grand Prix. Failing to reach the quarters in Lucknow, he will be looking to strike it rich for his team Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB), and individually. But it would not be a cakewalk as Verma and Sai Praneeth stand in his way.
Only last week, Verma defeated Sai Praneeth in Syed Modi GP. Having learnt the nuances of the game at Pullela Gopichand's academy, the 22-year-old is being touted as one for the future after his success against Danish stalwart Jan Jorgensen in semifinals of Hong Kong Open last year.
Notwithstanding his loss against Verma in the final in Lucknow, Sai Praneeth will be looking to get his hands back on the winner's trophy after conceding it to the former in Bareily. Known for causing upsets in the international arena, the third seed will have his task cut out as he looks to take the big leap -from a promising youngster to a finished product.
In women's section, Tanvi Lad looks the best bet amongst the 105 participants to clinch her first national title. However, strong challenge is expected to come from the likes of Ruthvika Shivani, Arundhati Pantawane and Rituparna Das. With a world ranking of 57, Lad, back from her stint with the Delhi Acers in the Premier Badminton League, will be looking to put her experience to good use against PSPB teammate Ruthvika, a former national champion. But she is not the only one Lad has to contend with. Pantawane and Das are no pushovers either and are eyeing their first major break at the national level.