Malvika Bansod, a 22-year-old rising star from Nagpur, has reached the women’s singles semifinals of the US Open Super 300 badminton tournament. In an intense three-game match, Bansod demonstrated her skill and determination by defeating Scotland’s Kristy Gilmour, a 2014 Commonwealth Games silver medalist, with a scoreline of 10-21, 21-15, 21-10.
The match began with Gilmour dominating the first game, winning 21-10. However, Bansod, ranked 49th in the world, showed remarkable resilience, bouncing back to take the second game 21-15, thus evening the match.
In the decisive third game, Bansod’s persistence and strategic play overwhelmed her opponent, leading to a 21-10 victory. This win is particularly significant as Bansod had previously defeated Gilmour at the 2022 Hylo Open, where Gilmour retired due to injury. Despite Gilmour having won their two prior encounters, this victory marks a sweet moment for the Indian prodigy.
Malvika gets the better of 3rd seed Kirsty Gilmour 🏴 to enter semifinal in style 😎🔥
💔 for Priyanshu & Treesa/Gayatri.#USOpen2024#IndiaontheRise#Badminton pic.twitter.com/C2ug2R7qM0
— BAI Media (@BAI_Media) June 29, 2024
Earlier this year, Malvika Bansod secured victory at the Azerbaijan International Challenge, further establishing herself as a rising star in the badminton world. Her next opponent will be sixth-seeded Japanese player Natsuki Nidaira, a formidable competitor.
In the men’s singles event, another promising Indian player, Priyanshu Rajawat, put up a strong fight but ultimately lost to China’s fourth seed, Lei Lan Xi. Despite winning the first game 21-15, Rajawat couldn’t sustain his momentum, losing the next two games 11-21 and 18-21 in a tightly contested quarterfinal match that lasted over an hour.
The Indian contingent’s campaign at the US Open Super 300 also saw the exit of the second-seeded women’s doubles pair, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand, in the quarterfinals. They faced a tough match against Japan’s sixth seeds, Rui Hirokami and Yuna Kato. After losing the first game 17-21, Jolly and Gopichand won the second game 21-17, but ultimately fell short in the decider, losing 19-21.
