Upcoming Indian shuttler Kiran George was at his supreme best on Sunday as he bagged the Indonesia Masters 100 title after beating Japan’s Koo Takahashi. The 23-year-old won in straight games 21-19, 22-20, to lift his second trophy. In the first game, the WR-50 George went into the mid-game interval with an 11-9 lead. Post that, Takahashi made a comeback at 15-14, but was not able to close the game.
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In the second game, George looked comfortable and troubled his opponent with a few attacking shots. At 16-12, the Indian looked ready to cross the line without any difficulty. But Takahashi had other plans, as he soon drew parity at 20-20. Kiran George held his nerve there, to close the game, and match without any further hiccups. This is George’s second title overall after the Odisha Open 2022. Previously in the tournament, he had beaten Tommy Sugiarto in the semis.
This year has turned out to be pretty rewarding for the shuttler who trains at the Prakash Padukone Academy in Bengaluru. He managed to reach the quarters of the Thailand Open 500, where he beat the likes of Shi Yuqi and Weng Hong Yang. He had also reached the semis of the Maldives International Challenge.
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With this win, he is likely to surpass his career-best ranking of WR-43. Earlier on Saturday, the women’s doubles team of Tanisha Crasto and Ashwini Ponnappa lost their semis battle. They lost to the top-seeded local team of Lanny Tria Mayasari and Ribka Sugiarto. The Indians had put up a strong fight but lost 22-20, 16-21, 13-21.
Mansi Singh had lost in the quarters against Chiu Pin-Chian of Chinese Taipei 16-21, 18-21. In the mixed doubles, the team of Sai Pratheek and Tanisha Crasto had also exited. They lost in the quarters to Wu Hsuan-Yi and Yang Chun Yun of Chinese Taipei.
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