PANAJI
Goa’s veteran badminton stars made a resounding impact with Sandhya Melasheemi emerging as the standout performer, clinching a double gold at the Yonex Sunrise 47th Indian Masters National Badminton Championship (35+ to 50+ categories) held at the Multipurpose Hall, Peddem, Mapusa.
Sandhya, a former Goa State champion, won the Women’s Singles 40+ title with a hard-fought 23-21, 21-16 victory over Maharashtra’s Aditi Rode. She then teamed up with Karnataka’s Sangeetha Mari to secure the Women’s Doubles 40+ crown, defeating Diva Arora and Aditi Rode (Delhi/Maharashtra) 21-12, 21-17. Meanwhile, Goa’s Leena Pednekar alias Dhapre added to the state’s triumph by dominating the Women’s Singles 50+ category, where she overcame Karnataka’s Shalini Shetty, who retired at 21-5, 7-2, ensuring another gold medal for Goa.
The finals also witnessed stellar performances from some of India’s former international stars. Abhinn Shyam Gupta (Uttar Pradesh), a former India International, secured the Men’s Singles 45+ title in a tense encounter against Mizoram’s Lalmuanawma, winning 23-21 before the latter retired due to injury. In the Men’s Doubles 50+ final, Amrish Shinde and Jaison Xavier (Gujarat/Kerala) displayed their class with a commanding 21-13, 21-14 victory over Parimelazhagan Pj and Shivkiran Singh Thakur (Karnataka/Maharashtra). Karnataka’s veteran duo Sunil Gladson and Vijay Lancy Mascarenhas emerged victorious in the Men’s Doubles 45+ category, outclassing Maharashtra’s Upendra Fadnis and former international star Nikhil Kanetkar in a closely contested 21-18, 21-18 final. In the Mixed Doubles 45+ event, Sameer Abbasi and Pooja Mehta (Gujarat) justified their top seeding, easing past Mit Adhyaru and Swati Chauhan (Gujarat) with a 21-16, 21-9 victory. S. Banu too secured double gold. She won the Women’s Doubles 50+ with Shalini Shetty (Karnataka) by defeating Jayashree Raghu and Urvashi Thapa (Karnataka/Himachal Pradesh) 23-21, 21-19. She also claimed victory in the Mixed Doubles 50+ partnering with Parimelazhagan Pj (Karnataka), overcoming Deepak Saxena and Urvashi Thapa (Chhattisgarh/Himachal Pradesh) in a gripping 14-21, 21-17, 21-17 final.
The final day witnessed several other thrilling contests across multiple categories. Swati Sharma (Uttarakhand) [2] emerged victorious in the Women’s Singles 35+, overcoming Sonal Jagdale (Railways) [1], while Jaswinder Singh (CAG) [5] secured the Men’s Singles 35+ title after a hard-fought battle against Prem Singh Chouhan (Rajasthan) [3]. In the Men’s Singles 50+, Jaison Xavier (Kerala) [1] dominated the final to claim the championship over Anil Kumar Srivastava, while Pooja Mehta (Gujarat) [1] put up a commanding performance to win the Women’s Singles 45+ against Swapnal Chakrabarty (Maharashtra) [2].
In the doubles events, Abhinand Shetty and Sangeetha Mari (Karnataka) [1] won the Mixed Doubles 40+, while Manjush Mohan K. K. and Jui Agaskar (CAG) clinched the Mixed Doubles 35+ title. Jayan James and Rajesh Krishnan N. (Andhra Pradesh/Tamil Nadu) triumphed in the Men’s Doubles 40+ after a thrilling contest, and Swapnal Chakrabarty and Pooja Khandekar (Maharashtra) [1] secured the Women’s Doubles 40+ crown. In the Women’s Doubles 35+, Anees Kowser J. and Swati Sharma (Tamil Nadu/Uttarakhand) [1] emerged as champions, while the Men’s Doubles 35+ title went to Bennet Antony and Manjush Mohan K. K. (CAG) [1], who defeated Adarsh Kumar and Sanjeeth S. (Karnataka/Railways) in the final.
