City prodigy Lakshay adds another title to his kitty

Anil Datt

Ludhiana, September 11

Lakshay Sharma (14), badminton prodigy from Ludhiana, fetched another title as he stunned his senior and experienced seeded player Abhinav Thakur from Jalandhar.

A student of Class IX at Sacred Heart Convent School, Sarabha Nagar, Lakshay got the better of Abhinav, 22nd ranked in the U-17 category at the national-level, wrapping up the final in straight sets to lay his hands on the title in the (U-17) singles during the Gursharan Singh Memorial Sub-Junior Punjab Ranking Badminton Championship held at Sangrur from September 5 to 9.

Abhinav appeared toiling hard against Lakshay who came out triumphant 22-20 and 21-19 to clinch the cliff-hanger and the title.

Lakshay also competed in the doubles category wherein he along with Ankit Soni from Jalandhar teamed up the pair and reached the finals. However, the duo stumbled at the last hurdle, going down 20-22, 21-12 and 18-21 to finish as runners-up.

A trainee of his father and former national coach Mangat Rai Sharma, Lakshay Sharma has been performing brilliantly at the national and international-level competitions for the past couple of years, winning national ranking tournaments besides. He also clinched titles in the Youth International Badminton Championship in Scotland, Swiss Open Youth Badminton Tournament in Switzerland and Glasgow Youth International Badminton Tournament.

Vaasvi Singhal, another trainee of Mangat Rai Sharma, also performed well at Sangrur, finishing among position holders.

Vaasvi (12), a student of Class VII at Sat Paul Mittal School, Dugri, bagged a medal in her upper age group. She, being a player of U-13, competed in the U-15 group and won a bronze medal. In the semifinal, Vaasvi lost to Arunima Pal of Ludhiana 18-21 and 16-21 to secure third position.

Sister Reshmi and Bhupinder Gogia, principals of Sacred Heart Convent School and Sat Paul Mittal School, respectively, appreciated the students on finishing at the victory podium and bringing fame to their respective schools.

Rajinder Kalsi, general secretary, Punjab Badminton Association, and Mohinder Singh Grewal, president of the District Badminton Association, Ludhiana, congratulated the players and their coach on this achievement. They wished them more success in future competitions.