India’s Malvika Bansod pulled off a remarkable upset, defeating Scotland’s Kristy Gilmour in a thrilling three-game match to advance to the women’s singles semifinals of the US Open Super 300 badminton tournament. The 22-year-old from Nagpur, currently ranked 49th in the world, displayed incredible resilience, overcoming a 10-21 deficit in the first game to clinch a 10-21 21-15 21-10 victory. This victory marked a sweet revenge for Bansod, who had previously lost twice to Gilmour in the past. Notably, she had also defeated Gilmour at the Hylo Open in 2022, although Gilmour was forced to retire in the second game due to an injury. Bansod’s impressive performance comes on the back of her recent success at the Azerbaijan International Challenge, where she emerged victorious. Her next challenge will be against the sixth-seeded Japanese player, Natsuki Nidaira.
Meanwhile, in the men’s singles, Priyanshu Rajawat put up a valiant fight but ultimately fell short against the fourth-seeded Lei Lan Xi of China. Rajawat lost 21-15 11-21 18-21 in a closely contested quarterfinal match that spanned just over an hour.
In the doubles category, India’s second-seeded pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand also saw their campaign come to an end in the last eight. They lost a hard-fought battle 17-21 21-17 19-21 to the Japanese sixth seeds, Rui Hirokami and Yuna Kato.
