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CHENGDU (CHINA) — Defending champions Indian men’s badminton team reached the quarterfinals of the Thomas Cup after scoring a comfortable 5-0 win over England in their second group C encounter, here on Monday.
World No 9 HS Prannoy set India on course with a commanding 21-15, 21-15 victory over Harry Huang, securing an early lead.
"The idea today was to be as clinical as possible because we saw against Thailand that one result here and there could have affected us. Personally, I am happy that I gave the team a winning start as it also helps my confidence going forward," said Prannoy, who had lost the opening match against Thailand to Kunlavut Vitidsarn.
Asian Games gold medallists Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty then were put under pressure by the English combination of Ben Lane and Sean Vendy but the world no. 3 combination banked on their big match experience to pull off a 21-17, 19-21, 21-15 win in an hour and five minutes.
Speaking about yet another tough win, the doubles combination of Satwiksairaj and Shetty said the conditions are quite difficult and they are happy that they found a way to win both their matches so far.
"Things were not going our way always and it’s always difficult to play a left-right combination as we hardly practice against such combinations in India. But we hung in there and that will help us ahead in the tournament," said Satwik.
With the team management opting to rest Lakshya Sen for this tie, Kidambi Srikanth sealed the victory with a 21-16, 21-11 win over Nadeem Dalvi and assuring India of a quarterfinal berth.
Following Srikanth's win, MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila showcased their prowess in the second doubles match, winning 21-17, 21-19 against Rory Easton and Alex Green. Then, Kiran George registered a 21-18, 21-12 victory over Kayan Cholan in the third singles rubber, completing a 5-0 scoreline for the Indian team.
India had earlier beaten Thailand 4-1 in their Group C opener on Saturday. On Wednesday, India will face Indonesia in a rematch of the 2022 final to determine the group C leader.
India and Indonesia both have two points, having secured identical victories against England and Thailand. However, Indonesia currently leads the Group C standings by virtue of winning more games.
Results:
India bt England 5-0 (HS Prannoy bt Harry Huang 21-15, 21-15; Satwiksairaj Rankireddy/Chirag Shetty bt Ben Lane/Sean Vendy 21-17, 19-21, 21-15; Kidambi Srikanth bt Nadeem Dalvi 21-16, 21-11; MR Arjun/Dhruv Kapila bt Rory Easton/Alex Green 21-17, 21-19; Kiran George bt Cholan Kayan 21-18, 21-12)