India's young talent Anwesha Gowda has advanced to the second round of the women's singles at the 2022 Australian Open. During her opening match at Sydney's State Sports Centre on Wednesday, she put on a masterclass to defeat Australia's Pitchaya Elysia Viravong. The 14-year-old, ranked eighth globally among juniors, left the 20-year-old Viravong with little room to breathe, winning 21-9, 21-11 in just 21 minutes of play in this BWF Super 300 event.
A young badminton player from India, Anwesha Gowda, advanced to the second round of the women’s singles competition at the Australia Open 2022. Anwesha Gowda played complete badminton to defeat Pitchaya Elysia Viravong of Australia on Wednesday at the State Sports Centre in Sydney. The 14-year-old Gowda, who is ranked eighth among junior players worldwide, outplayed 20-year-old Elysia Viravong 21-9, 21-11 in the BWF Super 300 tournament’s opening round. The Indian shuttler took just 21 minutes to beat the local player.
Gowda is riding a wave of success in 2022, having already secured four junior BWF championships and two runner-up finishes. Her journey continues in the second round, where she will face Malaysia's Goh Jin Wei, a powerhouse who has been the Youth Olympic Games champion since 2018. The 22-year-old Malaysian earned her spot by beating India's Tanya Hemanth with a score of 21-15, 21-16 in a 31-minute contest.
Fans can look forward to an intense battle as the confident Indian teen attempts to maintain her winning streak by taking down the 2018 BWF World Junior champion. However, the match against Jin Wei will be her toughest test yet. Currently, Gowda stands as the last remaining Indian player still in contention at the Australian Open.
In other results, the Indian doubles duo of Rutaparna and Swetaparna Panda fell to Chinese Taipei's Lee Chia Hsin and Teng Chun Hsun, losing 16-21, 14-21. Additionally, the tournament saw a few withdrawals before the first round in Sydney, including Sameer Verma and the women's doubles pair of Ritika Thaker and Simran Singhi.
Top Commonwealth Games stars PV Sindhu and Lakshya Sen also had to pull out of the BWF Super 300 due to health concerns. Sen was sidelined by a throat infection, while Sindhu is still recovering from an ankle injury.
Unfortunately, Indian star PV Sindhu will miss the 2022 BWF World Tour Finals in Bangkok, starting December 14. Although the two-time Olympic medalist hoped to be fit for the season finale, her recovery has taken longer than expected. The Badminton Association of India has already been notified of her withdrawal.
Singapore's Loh Kean Yew has punched his ticket to the World Tour Finals after a convincing 21-10, 21-9 win over Australia's Pit Seng in the Australian Open's first round.