Saini wins singles title in Bangladesh

Dhaka: India’s Abhishek Saini defeated compatriot Rithvik Sanjeevi in straight games in the summit clash to claim the men’s singles title at the Bangladesh International Challenge badminton tournament here. In the final played on Sunday, Saini beat Sanjeevi 21-15, 21-18 in 34 minutes. Earlier in the semifinals, Saini had quelled the challenge of fellow Indian Kartikey Gulshan Kumar 17-21, 21-15, 21-15, while Sanjeevi, a trainee of Hatsun Badminton Centre in Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu, edged out Indonesia’s Sulistio Tegar 21-13 19-21 21-14. Indian duo of Mehreen Riza and Arathi Sara Sunil won the women’s doubles event, beating Kasturi Radhakrishnan and Venosha Radhakrishna (Malaysia) 22-20, 21-12 in the final. The mixed doubles final saw the Indian team of Pratik Ranade and Akshaya Warang lose 15-21, 18-21 to Sri Lanka’s Sachin Dias and Kavidi Sirimannage.