Carolina Marin beats Kirsty Gilmour in 2 games. Kirsty took time to get into her rhythm and put up a good fight in game 2.
Pia Zebadiah/ Satwik Rankireddy beat Kim Sa Rang/Sikki Reddy in 2 games. Pia took time to get into her rhythm but she was outstanding in game 2. Satwik was really good with his returns and smashes!
What a great finals! Satwik delivered when it counted the most. At 17 years old, he can play with the best in the world. Now India needs to find a MD or XD partner that can match his skill. It would be a waste if Satwik can't find an MD or XD partner that can compliment him. The only suggestion that I would make for next year is to remove the -1 penalty if the Trump match ends in an upset. One of the semi-finals finished too quickly in 3 matches because of the Trump upset. The crowd and the viewers didn't get their money's worth. If I paid for tickets to that semi-final, I would be upset that it ended so quickly. Maybe allow -1 for Trump matches during the regular season games. But once it reaches the semifinals, you need to cater to the crowd and viewers.
I also want to say the timing of the PBL is great. I don't think there is a SS until AE in March. It's nice to have high level badminton until the next SS.
There is Super 500 in Malaysia and Indonesia starting next week, which features almost all top players.
Unfortunately, it coincides with CBSL, so we don't get to see the chinese players in action. It would have been amazing to see Lin Dan play here. Would have taken the popularity of the game to another level. He has been playing well in CBSL during the same duration. But the quality and participation of PBL is increasing with every passing year.
@PBLIndiaLive: The moment when @Hyd_Hunters won the #VodafonePBL! #HYDvBLR #VodafonePBLFinal #SmashTheHouseDown
Satwik + Sikky Reddy could be a very good pair in XD, considering long term. Sikky is maturing and is more confident since last year. Easily the best XD female pair from India (would rate her above ashiwini).
