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GUWAHATI: Tanvi Sharma was throwing the kitchen sink, employing every trick in her playbook in a bid to keep her dreams of becoming a junior world champion. Feints, net shots, her preferred smashes - both forehand and down the line. Heck, she even employed the short service, something she had not used even once coming into her biggest match of her young career on Sunday. But all that to no avail as Anyapat Phichitpreechasak, her opposite number in the final, was just too silky, just too good. The Hoshiapur girl, who was looking to emulate Saina Nehwal, was second-best for large parts of the contest as her Thai opponent had a response for everything that was thrown at her. At the nets, the nimble-footed Thai shuttler was as sharp as a samurai sword, producing inch-perfect angled returns that had the Indian in trouble on several occasions. When Tanvi, 16, tried to attack her back court, Anyapat was effective in equal measure with her flat returns and good follow-ups. And her skills also matched her endurance as she was covering all lengths of the court like a seasoned operator.After conceding the opening game, Tanvi did display heart, showing signs of a potential fightback. But just when she had built a decent lead, she made some untimely errors to let Anyapat off the hook. Tanvi was guilty of squandering a commanding position on several occasions. With the home crowd, who had turned up in large numbers, rooting for her, Tanvi continued to fight, fetching a few points in the process. But it was too little, too late.
India's top seeded Tanvi Sharma produced a near-perfect match against China's Liu Si Ya to storm into the final of the BWF World Junior Champions in Guwahati on Saturday. The 16-year-old Tanvi followed the footsteps of former world No.1 Saina Nehwal and Aparna Popat to become only the third Indian female player to qualify for the final of the tournament, recording a 15-11, 15-9 win over her opponent. Tanvi will now play against the second-seeded Anyapat Phichitpreechasak from Thailand, who fought ...Read More >