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Praneeth, Manu-Sumeeth lead India’s campaign at Australian Open badminton (Preview)
Sydney, May 8 (IANS) In the absence of high profile shuttlers like P.V. Sindhu, Saina Nehwal, Kidambi Srikanth and Ashwini Ponnappa, B. Sai Praneeth and the men’s doubles pair of Manu Attri and B. Sumeeth Reddy will lead India’s campaign at the Australian Open HSBC BWF World Tour Super 300 starting here on Wednesday.
After a busy April, which saw Indians going full throttle in the Commonwealth Games (CWG) and the Asian Championships, and keeping Thomas and Uber Cup in mind, several big names pulled out of the tournament, which has become a low-key affair in the transformed professional badminton circuit.
From last edition’s total prize money of $750,000, this year’s tournament saw a drop of $600,000 in prize money.
However, the withdrawls of the big players will offer chances to other players to make most of the limelight.
Manu-Sumeeth have been seeded third and will open their campaign against Australian qulified pair of Lukas Defolky and Michael Fariman. The other Indian men’s doubles pair of Arjun M.R. and Ramchandran Shlok will meet Australians Tam Raymond and Eric Vuong.
Another Indian men’s doubles pair of Rohan Kapoor and Shivam Sharma will meet Malaysians Tang Jie Chen and Goh Soon Huat while eighth seeds Francis Alwin and K. Nandagopal will face Tae In Jung and Hwi Tae Kim.
In the men’s singls, world No.18 Praneeth has been handed a top seeding and he will meet Israel’s Misha Zilberman in the opening round.
Fourth seed Sameer Verma faces New Zealand’s Abhinav Manota while Sourabh Verma will take on Takuma Ueda of Japan.
Ajay Jayaram will face Japanese Riichi Takeshita while Lakshya Sen may find it tough against Hong Kong seventh seed Lee Cheuk Yiu.
In the women’s singles, Sai Uttejitha Rao Chukka will meet Japanese Ayumi Mine and Sri Krishna Priya Kudaravalli will take on Indonesia’s Yulia Yosephin Susanto. Vaishnavi Reddy Jakka will meet Georgina Bland of England.
World No.14 Michelle Li of Canada is the top seed in this category. She will begin her campaign against Chinese Han Yue.
In the women’s doubles, J. Meghana and Poorvisha S Ram will face Maggie Chan and Jodee Vega of Australia.
Earlier on Tuesday, Meghana paired up with Shivam Sharma as they won their mixed doubles first round against Indonesians Yehezkiel Fritz Mainakay and Lyanny Alessandra Mainaky 21-13, 21-10.
Another Indian mixed doubles pair, Rohan Kapoor and Kuhoo Garg, lost to South Koreans Kim Won Ho and Yu Rim Lee 10-21, 11-21.
–IANS
pur/mr
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.