Korea Masters: Rakshitha Ramraj shocks Tanvi Sharma to reach semi-finals

Rakshitha Ramraj fought back from a game down to beat Tanvi Sharma in the Korea Masters quarter-final. The win set up an all-Indian semi-final with Ashmita Chaliha and underlined a strong week for young Indian shuttlers in Korea.

In Short

• Rakshitha beat third seed Tanvi Sharma 18-21, 21-18, 21-19 in Korea
• Tanvi had head to Korea Masters after winning a Super 300 title last week
• Ashmita Chahila defeated top seed Hina Akechi of Japan in a quarterfinal

In a battle of teenagers, Rakshitha Sree Ramraj defeated the in-form Tanvi Sharma in the women's singles quarter-final of the Korea Masters Super 300 in South Chungcheong Province on Friday, August 7. The 19-year-old fought back from a game down in a thrilling contest to beat the third seed and progress to the semi-finals.

Rakshitha Sree will take on compatriot Ashmita Chaliha, who defeated top seed Hina Akechi of Japan in another quarter-final on Friday.

All three Indian shuttlers who have impressed in Korea will not be part of the BWF World Championships, which begin on August 17 in New Delhi.

Rakshitha, 19, who won the Vietnam International Challenge in March, produced one of the biggest wins of her season by defeating World No. 30 Tanvi, who arrived in fine form after winning her maiden Super 300 title in Taipei last week.

Incidentally, Rakshitha extended her head-to-head record against Tanvi to 4-0.

GRITTY FROM 19-YEAR-OLD RAKSHITHA

Despite losing the opening game, Rakshitha bounced back after making a few tactical adjustments to win the quarter-final 18-21, 21-18, 21-19 in one hour and one minute.

Rakshitha raced to a 13-8 lead in the opening game before Tanvi mounted a remarkable comeback, reeling off eight of the next nine points to turn an 8-13 deficit into a 16-14 lead before closing out the game.

The second game was another closely fought affair. Rakshitha held a narrow two-point advantage at the mid-game interval and eventually earned two game points after Tanvi found the net. She squandered the first but converted the second when Tanvi sent her return wide.

The decider followed a similar pattern, with Rakshitha taking a slender two-point lead into the interval. The scores were locked at 14-14 before Tanvi faltered at the crucial stage, committing three unforced errors to hand Rakshitha a 19-16 lead.

Another errant cross-court smash gave Rakshitha four match points, and she sealed the victory when Tanvi found the net once again.

World No. 50 Ashmita also came through a gruelling quarter-final that lasted more than an hour, beating World No. 22 Hina Akechi of Japan 20-22, 21-15, 21-19.

Rakshitha and Ashmita will now face each other in the last four, with the winner likely to take on fourth seed Han Qian Xi of China or unseeded Kim Ga Ram of South Korea in the final. (WITH PTI INPUTS)

- Ends