The Indian women's badminton team sailed into the knockout stage of the Uber Cup after humbling USA 4-1 in a lopsided Group D match in Bangkok on Tuesday. India, who had defeated Canada 4-1 in their opening tie, notched up a second successive win to cement their position in the top two spots of their group to qualify for the quarterfinals.
The Indian men's team earned its second successive win yesterday, blanking Canada 5-0 in a group tie to qualify for the knockouts of the Thomas Cup in Bangkok on Monday. With this result, the Indian team, which defeated Germany by a similar 5-0 margin on Sunday, is certain to finish in the top-2 in Group C and thus qualify for the quarterfinal.
P V Sindhu once again lead the proceedings with a comfortable 21-10 21-11 win over Jennie Gai in just 26 minutes. The doubles pair of Tanisha Crasto and Treesa Jolly then beat Francesca Corbett and Allison Lee 21-19 21-10 before Aakarshi Kashyap notched up a 21-18 21-11 victory over Esther Shi as India took an unassailable 3-0 lead.
The young doubles pair of Simran Singhi and Ritika Thaker then went down fighting to Lauren Lam and Kodi Tang Lee 12-21 21-17 13-21 to salvage some pride for USA, though the Indian pair looked impressive once again. In the final match, Ashmita Chaliha prevailed 21-18 21-13 over Natalie Chi to wrap up the match for India by a 4-1 scoreline.
The Indian women's team, which has won two bronze medals in the past, will next face a tough contest against South Korea on Wednesday in their last group match, aiming for top spot in the group.
In the men's contest, World Championships silver medallist Kidambi Srikanth fought back from a game down to beat Brian Yang 20-22, 21-11, 21-15 in 52 minutes to give India the lead.
The doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty then needed just 29 minutes to beat Jason Anthony Ho-Shue and Kevin Lee before world No 23 HS Prannoy won his singles match against BR Sankeerth 21-15, 21-12 to make it 3-0 and clinch the tie for India.
The second doubles pair of Krishna Prasad Garaga and Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala then beat Dong Adam and Nyl Yakura in 21-15, 21-11 in 34 minutes. The rout was completed when Priyanshu Rajawat, who came in place of Lakshya Sen, beat Victor Lal in three games, 21-13, 20-22, 21-14 in the third men's singles which lasted 52 minutes.
The Indian men's team is searching for its first medal at the tournament. No Indian men's team has ever reached the semifinals of the Thomas Cup.
India will play its final group C match against Chinese Taipei on Wednesday, which is expected to be the toughest competition for the team. It will also decide the group toppers.
The tournament is being shown on Sports18 and can be streamed on Voot.