Team Herald
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RAIA: Rahul Deswal emerged as the standout performer, securing a double crown with victories in both the Men’s Singles and Mixed Doubles events, at the BPS State Badminton Ranking Tournament held at the Manohar Parrikar Indoor Stadium, Navelim, on Sunday.
In the Men’s Singles final, Rahul overcame a spirited challenge from Nishant Shenai, winning 21-18, 18-21, 21-11. In the Mixed Doubles, he teamed up with Malaika Lobo to defeat the pair of Suraj Lama and Minoshka Pereira, 21-18, 21-10.
In the Women’s Singles, Aarohi Coutoncar triumphed with a commanding 21-17, 21-9 win over Sufiya Shaikh, while Shivanjali Thite and Sufiya Shaikh claimed the Women’s Doubles title defeating Aarohi Coutoncar and Minoshka Pereira, 21-16, 21-18.
In the Men's Doubles, Aryaman Saraf and Suraj Lama dominated their opponents Floyd Araujo and Fredrick Fernandes winning 21-10, 21-11 to take the title.
In Veterans Ranking events, Dr Manju Khandeparkar emerged triple crown winner, while Navneet Nasnodkar, Vineeta Adpaikar, Ehrlick Ataide, Kamlesh Kanji, Pradosh Silimkhan, Tanaji Sawant and Pradeep Dhond emerged with double crowns.
Archana Marya, Ayub C K, Dr Satish Kudchadker, Filipe Barbosa, Govind Navelkar, Jatinder Singh, Judy Braganza, Juliana Colaco, Krishnanand Vernekar, Krishnaprasad Naik, Manjiri Moktali, Milagrina Mascarenhas, Rashmi Lobo, Rupchandra Humraskar, Sandip Kanji, Dr Sandeep Fowkar, Satishchandra Khandeparker, Sebastian Ferrao, Summerwell Da Gama, Wilson D’Souza were others who emerged triumphant in their respective age categories. The following were the other podium finishers in Veterans category securing runners-up places: Ahmed Sheikh, Arnaldo Rodrigues, Boaventura Ferrao, Deepak Salaskar, Ganesh Pai Vernekar, Isabel Antonio Fernandes, Jayashree Fernandes, Jeffrey D’Souza, Kashinath Jalmi, Kishore Raghubans, Louanne Almeida, Mahesh Pauskar, Manjiri Moktali, Ozita, Parteek Mahajan, Peter Tellis, Praveen Shenoy, Rajan Mathew, Riti Rodrigues, Roseline Bunyan, Sahil Bhutani, Shamsudeen C K, Supriya Pai Kuchelkar, Vishnu Dutt Sharma, Volusiano Dourado and Wilfred Jacques.
Organised by BPS Sports Club in collaboration with the Goa Badminton Association and the Sports Authority of Goa, the tournament served as one of the crucial selection events for the upcoming senior and veterans nationals.