Double Silver Lining

India’s Ashwini Ponnappa-Tanisha Crasto go down fighting 14-21, 21-17, 15-21 to third-seed Japanese pair of Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi to finish runners-up

Indian pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto produced a valiant fight before going down in a thrilling three-game women’s doubles final at the Syed Modi International Super 300 badminton tournament here on Sunday.

77-minute clash

The World No. 32 Indian pair, which had clinched the Nates International Challenge and Abu Dhabi Masters Super 100 this year, lost 14-21, 21-17, 15-21 against third seeds Rin Iwanaga and Kie Nakanishi of Japan in a 77-minute clash to make a creditable runner-up finish.

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Succumbed to pressure?

The seventh seeded Indians made good starts but couldn’t sustain the pressure in the opening game. Ashwini, 36, and 20-year-old Tanisha, who started playing together only in January this year, roared back into the contest after winning the second game and fought back from 1-8 down in the decider to 13-15 before the World No. 15 Japanese marched ahead.

Tanisha dazzled in the frontcourt, producing some precise placements, as the Indian pair lead 7-4 in the opening game. The Japanese pair clawed back with three points before Ashwini came into the fore, sending down a couple of smash to lead 11-8 at the break. However, Rin and Kie managed to turn the tables with four straight points. Things went downhill thereafter as the Indian pair inexplicably fell into a pool of unforced errors.

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