Last year, D.S. Saneeth had lost to Sankar Muthusamy in a junior tournament final in Russia. But that loss offered Saneeth plenty of lessons when he took on the top-seeded Sankar in the Yonex Sunrise South Zone inter-State badminton championships at the St. Peter’s Sports Academy here on Wednesday. In the end, he shocked Sankar 7-21, 22-20, 23-21 and entered the men’s final.
Sankar, the junior World No. 3, is a defensive player and thrives on long rallies but on Wednesday Saneeth was ready for it. The 19-year-old, coached by former National champion Arvind Bhat in Bengaluru, engaged Sankar in long rallies, waiting for him to commit mistakes.
“That final in Russia taught me how to handle Sankar, taught me to play long rallies, to stay calm,” said Saneeth.
