DUBAI — India have made a clean sweep of all the titles on offer in the badminton competition of DSC Dubai Sports Community Club’s Tournament, with rising star Tanisha Crasto winning three of them.
The 17-year old Crasto, who is India’s top-ranked junior doubles player and has represented the country at the World Junior Badminton Championships, showed great resilience on the day, winning all eight of her matches in front of an appreciate audience at the tournament venue — Dubai Sports World at Dubai World Trade Centre.
Crasto won the women’s single title defeating compatriot Tanika Sequeira 15-8, 15-4, and then added the doubles and mixed doubles gold to her kitty. In the women’s doubles, she paired with Vidya Manghnani to beat the Nepalese duo of Gyanu Maya Baral and Saniya Chand 15-5, 15-9, while she won the mixed doubles alongside James Varghese, defeating another Nepalese pair of Bikki Budha and Gyanu Maya Baral 15-5, 15-6.
In the men’s singles final, India’s Sachin Seth prevailed 15-12, 15-6 over China’s Che Liang, while the Indian duo of Rohith Haridas and Shibil CP rallied to clinch the men’s doubles crown, edging Michael Nucop Shapcotte and Vicente Reyes of the Philippines 11-15, 15-8, 15-12.
In the basketball championship, Syria beat the Philippines 45-41 in the women’s final, while the Philippines men edged USA 49-47 for the title. In the cricket tournament, India Club 2 defeated India Club 1 for the title.
Organized by Dubai Sports Council, the Dubai Sports Community Club’s Tournament features players and teams from 14 social clubs and communities of Dubai, including India Club, Pakistani Club, Jordanian Social Club, Sudanese Social Club, Egyptian Social Club, Filipino Social Club, the Lebanese Community, the Syrian Community, the Nepalese Community, the Sri Lankan Community, the American Community, the Indonesian Community, the Yemeni Community and the Chinese Community.
RESULTS
BADMINTON
Men singles final: Sachin Seth (India) beat Che Liang (China) 15-12, 15-6; Semi-finals: Sachin Seth (India) beat Mahmoud Taifour 15-9, 15-14; Che Liang (China) beat Munzar Abdul Rehman (Pakistan) 15-7, 15-10.
Women’s singles final: Tanisha Crasto (India) beat Tanika Sequeira (India) 15-8, 15-4; Semi-finals: Tanisha Crasto (India) beat Jenni Escolar (Philippines) 15-0, 15-0; Tanika Sequeira (India) beat Dima Khafaji (Syria) 15-0, 15-2.
Men’s doubles final: Rohith Haridas and Shibil C.P. (India) beat Michael Nucop Shapcotte and Vicente Reyes (Philippines) 11-15, 15-8, 15-12; Semi-finals: Rohith Haridas and Shibil C.P. (India) beat Ricky Li and Van (China) 15-5, 15-10; Michael Nucop Shapcotte and Vicente Reyes (Philippines) beat Farrukh Iqbal Anjum and Munzar Abdul Rehman 15-13, 15-13.
Women’s doubles final: Tanisha Crasto and Vidya Manghnani (India) beat Gyanu Maya Baral and Saniya Chand (Nepal) 15-5, 15-9; Semi-final: Tanisha Crasto and Vidya Manghnani (India) beat A Ashana Maith and CK Kakerideniya (Sri Lanka) 15-2, 15-3; Gyanu Maya Baral and Saniya Chand (Nepal) beat Gemma Pedrosa and Len Maria (Philippines) 15-6, 15-2.
Mixed Doubles final: James Varghese and Tanisha Crasto (India) beat Bikki Budha and Gyanu Maya Baral (Nepal) 15-5 15-6; James Varghese and Tanisha Crasto (India) beat Che Liang and Diana Wu (China) 15-14, 15-4; Bikki Budha and Gyanu Maya Baral (Nepal) beat Vicente Reyes and Len Maria (Philippines) 15-9 15-11.
BASKETBALL:
Women’s final: Syria beat Philippines 45-41; Third place: Egypt beat Lebanon 59-49
Men’s final: Philippines beat USA 49-47; Third place: Lebanon beat Egypt 52-42. — SG