Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Quimcy Dsouza’s push for a place in the women’s singles teqball final came to an end on Saturday, but her Asian Games campaign is far from over. The Indian lost to Indonesia’s Sumaya in the semifinals and will now play for bronze on Sunday.
Dsouza made a bright start to the contest, taking the first set 12-7. Sumaya hit back in the second, winning it 12-9, before closing out the match with a 12-7 win in the decider.
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The loss means Dsouza will not get a shot at the gold medal, but she does not have to play another match to earn her place in the bronze-medal contest. The losing semifinalist goes straight into the bronze-medal match, with Dsouza set to face Cambodia’s Koemyean Dy.
And there is more to come for the Indian on Sunday. Dsouza will also be in the mixed doubles bronze-medal match with Mohamed Anas Imran Beg, giving her two chances to finish her Asian Games debut with a medal.
DSOUSA’S BREAKTHROUGH RUN
Dsouza had already made history before stepping onto the court for her semifinal. The 24-year-old topped her group in teqball’s Asian Games debut, beginning her campaign with a thrilling comeback against Japan’s Yuina Sakamoto.
She lost the opening set 10-12 but fought back to win the next two 12-11, 13-11. Dsouza then beat Cambodia’s Koemyean Dy 12-9, 12-7 to finish top of her group and book a direct spot in the semifinals.
That run had taken Dsouza to within one win of a guaranteed medal and put her in the spotlight as one of India’s biggest stories in the sport at the Aichi-Nagoya Games.
TWO BRONZE MEDAL CHANCES
The first opportunity comes at 10am on Sunday, when Dsouza takes on Koemyean Dy in the women’s singles bronze-medal match. She will not need to go through the repechage, with the losing semifinalist getting a direct place in the bronze playoff.
Half an hour later, Dsouza will be back in action, this time alongside Beg in the mixed doubles bronze-medal match, scheduled for 10:30am.
It means the Indian has a busy Sunday ahead, with two bronze medals on the line. After falling short in the singles semifinal, Dsouza now has two more chances to put India on the podium in teqball, which is making its Asian Games debut.
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
