Shuttlers Sifat, Joy clinch doubles gold in Islamabad

Bangladesh’s SSM Sifat Ullah and Nazmul Islam Joy won the men’s doubles title at the South Asian Regional Junior Badminton Championship, defeating their Nepalese opponents in the final in Islamabad, Pakistan on Tuesday.

Sifat and Joy overcame Nepal’s Prince Dahal and Kshitz Khanal 21-15, 18-21, 21-14 in a hard-fought final. Earlier, the Bangladeshi pair secured their place in the final by beating Pakistan’s Raj Hossain and Muhammad Zaid 21-18, 21-19 in the semifinals. 

The event featured four teams from Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan.

Top-seeded Sifat, who came into the tournament with a world ranking of 577, however, fell short in the men’s singles event. He lost to Nepal’s Prince Dahal 21-23, 15-21 in the semifinals.

Joy also had a disappointing run in singles, exiting in the quarterfinals after going down to Pakistan’s Rai Abdul Manan 6-21, 21-11, 21-14.