CWG 2018: India rout Scotland 5-0 to enter badminton mixed-team event quarterfinals

Indian badminton players did not let their winning spirit die down after the first day of Commonwealth Games 2018 as they beat Scotland 5-0 in another whitewash victory to enter the quarterfinals of mixed-team event.

Powered with ace shuttlers Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth, India beat Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Scotland all by the same margin.

Saina started India’s campaign against Scotland on Friday as she beat Julie Macpherson 21-14, 21-12 in women’s singles at the Carrara Sports Arena, giving her side 1-0 lead.

It was a one-sided encounter as Saina used her experience to reach an easy victory against her opponent.

After struggling on Day 1 against Pakistan’s Murad Ali, Srikanth took the centrestage against Kieran Merrilees in men’s singles.

The Indian shuttler started on a bad note, trailing 4-1 but cameback after the mid-game break in a thrilling encounter to win the first game 21-18.

His second game, however, was in complete contrast to the first with Srikanth on fire. He took a powerful 17-0 lead to completely destroy his opponent, winning the second game with a margin of 21-2.

Later, Sikki Reddy-Ashwini Ponnappa won 21-8, 21-12 against Scotland’s Kirsty Gilmour-Eleanor O’Donell in the women’s doubles category to give India 3-0 lead.

Satwik Rankireddy teamed up with Chirag Chandrashekhar Shetty in the men’s doubles to beat Patrick Machugh-Adamn Hall 21-16, 21-19 while Pranaav Chopra-Sikki Reddy had an exciting encounter against Martin Campbell-Julie Macpherson to emerge winners by 21-17, 21-15.

With the wins, India saw another whitewash victory in the mixed-team event.

Your Opinion Counts !