Golden selfies
Achanta take men’s singles crown!!!
Men’s Singles: Final
Aged 37, Sharath Kamal Achanta still has it after securing the men’s singles title in Muscat with a 4-2 victory over Marcos Freitas (6-11, 11-8, 12-10, 11-9, 3-11, 17-15).
The two finalists alternate wins in games four and five before playing out a thrilling game six: Achanta saves two game points only for Freitas to rescue a championship point with a back edge of the table winner. The Indian saves three further game points and this time he capitalises, taking his second championship point to seal the title.
Momentum switch
Men’s Singles: Final
The momentum appears to have switched in Achanta’s favour now with the no.4 seed moving in front for the first time in the final.
In game two the Indian pulls off a fine recovery from 3-7 down to win eight of the following nine points (11-8). Freitas then enjoys a mini comeback of his own, saving two game point opportunities but he can’t stop Achanta from taking game three (12-10). There’s a big proportion of Achanta supporters in the crowd with many of his fellow compatriots cheering him on – does the advantage lie with the Indian?
Freitas off to bright start
Men’s Singles: Final
Portugal’s Marcos Freitas has set the early pace in the men’s singles final, taking the opening game by a five-point margin (11-6). India’s Sharath Kamal Achanta is still finding his footing but don’t rule him out from getting back into this one – all still to play for here!
Top seed prevails in crazy affair
Women’s Singles: Final
The expedite system has worked a treat for top seed Hitomi Sato, who goes on to win every game after being called!
Miyu Kato it would appear began to feel the pressure of the shortened rallies, rushing a number of opportunities and never really found a way back into the tie. One hour and 38 minutes was the final run-time for the match which saw Sato take it 4-2 (14-16, 12-14, 17-15, 11-9, 11-8, 11-9).
Sato fights back in marathon encounter
Women’s Singles: Final
Disappointed to find herself two games down, Sato has responded in the best way possible as the defender takes the next two games (17-15, 11-9) to level the scores at 2-2.
Already an hour and 15 minutes played the officials have put the expedite system in play, meaning the receive only needs to return 13 shots to win the point. This is going to get very interesting for Sato who will fancy her chances on receive of serve but it also means she will have to go out of her comfort zone on her own service and try and out-hit Kato!
Tight start but Kato pulls ahead
Women’s Singles: Final
What an exciting start to the women’s singles final in Muscat with both Hitomi Sato and Miyu Kato pushing each other down to the wire!
Both of the opening two games were decided by the narrowest of margins, requiring additional points to find a winner and on both occasions that proved to be third seed Kato (16-14, 14-12). A tight start but already Kato finds herself with breathing space in the tie – can Sato start to ramp up the pressure on her Japanese compatriot?
Who are you backing?
Mixed association duo strikes gold
Men’s Doubles: Final
Seeded two positions below their Belgian counterparts, Serbia’s Aleksandar Karakasevic and Slovakia’s Lubomir Pistej have defied expectations to claim men’s doubles gold.
Just like the women’s doubles final, the men’s doubles final only required three games to be decided with the mixed association combination of Karakasevic and Pistej proving too good for top seeds Martin Allegro and Florent Lambiet on this occasion (11-8, 11-6, 11-6).
Title favourites live up to expectations
Women’s Doubles: Final
Honoka Hashimoto and Hitomi Sato have been crowned women’s doubles champions in Muscat following a devastating performance in the final.
Starting out of the blocks with blistering pace the Japanese pair refused to slow down throughout the tie, defeating the second seeds from Singapore Zeng Jian and Lin Ye in straight games (11-3, 11-9, 11-7).
Sharath wins!
Men’s Singles: Semi-finals
It’s been a morning to remember here in Muscat! In the third decider today, India’s Sharath Kamal Achanta defeated Russia’s Kirill Skachkov 4-3 (11-13, 11-13, 13-11, 11-9, 13-11, 8-11, 11-7) to claim a place in the final.
Lasting well over an hour, the match between these two large wingspan players always looked likely to head to a seven-game thriller. Achanta stood firm once he took the lead after winning three in a row, and that pushed Skachkov’s challenge into the final game. Eventually, Achanta pulled through to the final, where he meets the top seed, Marcos Freitas!
Skachkov and Achanta set for a long battle
Men’s Singles: Semi-finals
Kirill Skachkov leads Sharath Kamal Achanta by 2-1 (13-11, 13-11, 11-13) in a match very much looking destined for the long haul.
The Russian has started the stronger of the two, winning the first two games with persistence and pressure. However, the Indian hit back and won the third game with the same score, and could very well take this to a decider.
Kato clean sweeps in the fastest session of the day
Women’s Singles: Semi-finals
After two deciders to start the day, Miyu Kato gave the fans some respite by clean sweeping the semi-final against Yang Xiaoxin in straight games (11-9, 11-8, 11-5, 11-7).
The Japanese was in full flight mode in her 4-0 win, and gave the Monegasque no room to work with around the table. She now heads to the final where she will meet her compatriot, Hitomi Sato later today.
Freight Train reaches the final destination
Men’s Singles: Semi-finals
Well, well, well… that certainly was a match made for the pleasure of the fans. Marcos Freitas came back in the sixth game to take us to the second decider of the day, and it did not disappoint!
Taking exactly two seconds less than an hour to secure a 4-3 (5-11, 11-9, 6-11, 6-11, 11-8, 13-11, 11-5) win, the title favourite needed to make a comeback against Harmeet Desai, after the Indian truly showcased some amazing work around the table. The bronze may not shine as brightly as gold, but Desai can be proud of his performance against the Portuguese today.
Freitas being pushed by Desai
Men’s Singles: Semi-finals
It’s the turn of the men’s top seed to be going to a decider, it seems. Marcos Freitas is up against Harmeet Desai and the Indian is proving to be a tough nut to crack.
The Portuguese has been in clinical form here in Muscat, but is currently down 2-3 (11-5, 9-11, 11-6, 11-6, 8-11) to Desai, who looks set to either win this or at least take it to the final game. What can the ‘Freight Train’ come up with?
Sato wins the decider!
Women’s Singles: Semi-finals
It took the complete set of games but we have a finalist! Japanese Hitomi Sato came out on top after a topsy-turvy battle, beating compatriot Honoka Hashimoto 4-3 (11-6, 8-11,10-12, 11-9, 6-11, 11-3, 11-7) in an epic match lasting over 80 minutes!
After having levelled the scores twice, Sato looked to be on course to walk in to the seventh game with confidence and momentum. That proved to be very true as Hashimoto, the top seed, could not stop Sato from securing her place in the final later today.
Hashimoto in the lead
Women’s Singles: Semi-finals
It’s a super fast good morning here in Muscat, Oman as two Japanese women in Hitomi Sato and Honoka Hashimoto have kick started the semi-finals with breathtaking pace.
At the given moment, Hashimoto is in lead 2-1 (6-11, 11-8, 12-10) after she stopped a game point conversion by her doubles-partner Sato only to then go ahead and convert her own.
