Viraj Kuvale bagged a grand double winning the men’s singles and men’s doubles crown in the CCI-GMBA Senior District Badminton Championship, jointly organized by the Cricket Club of India (CCI) and Greater Mumbai Badminton Association (GMBA) at the CCI badminton courts.
Champion Viraj Kuvale (left) and runner-up and elder brother Viplav Kuwale, pose with their respective trophies.
In the singles final, which was a contest between siblings, Viraj the third seed and younger brother, got the better of an uncharacteristic Viplav Kuvale, the number one seed, charging to a quick 21-12, 21-10 victory to emerge champion.
Later, the top-seeded pair of brothers Viplav and Viraj, combined perfectly to overcome the challenge from the third-seeded pairing of Nihar Kelkar and Siddhesh Raut, and coasted to a 21-13, 21-7 win and clinch the doubles crown.
Contrary to expectations the singles final was a one-sided affair as Viraj capitalized on the sloppy and erratic play from Viplav to smartly earn points and gain the ascendancy. Viraj having snatched the momentum, managed to maintain it throughout the match and come through with a degree of ease.
Earlier, in the penultimate round matches, Viplav struggled initially and lost the first game but recovered to put it across Siddhesh Raut recording a come-from-behind 12-21, 21-8, and 21-7 win. In the second semi-final, the third-seeded Viraj played with plenty of determination to upset second-seeded Siddhesh Raut pulling off a 14-21, 21-11, and 21-8 victory to set up a title clash with elder brother Viplav.
In the doubles semi-finals, Viplav and Viraj knocked out the unseeded pairing of Daras Nadar and Vicky Lapasia posting an easy 21-11, 21-14 win. In the other last four-round, Nihar and Siddhesh defeated the second-seeded combination of Jaidev Menon and Yash Tiwari 21-14, 21-13 to advance into the final.
Results – Men’s singles (semi-finals): 1-Viplav Kuvale beat Siddhesh Raut 12-21, 21-8, 21-7; 3-Viraj Kuvale beat 2-Yash Tiwari 14-21, 21-11, 21-8. Final: 3-Viraj Kuvale beat 1-Viplav Kuvale 21-12, 21-10.
Men’s doubles (semi-finals): 1-Viplav Kuvale/Viraj Kuvale beat Daras Nadar/Vicky Lapasia 21-11, 21-14; 3-Nihar Kelkar/Siddhesh Raut beat 2-Jaidev Menon/Yash Tiwari 21-14, 21-13. Final: 1-Viplav Kuwale/Viraj Kuwale beat 3-Nihar Kelkar/Siddhesh Raut 21-13, 21-7.