Prannoy, Ying guide Smash Masters home

After losing to Chennai Smashers in its previous match, the Smash Masters ensured there was no let up in its intensity as it steamrolled the bottom-placed Mumbai Rockets in the first three matches. 

The loss in those three matches means Mumbai Rockets is effectively out of contention for a place in the semifinals. Ahmedabad made its intentions clear right from the outset when its mixed doubles pairing of Kamilla Rytter and Lee Cheuk Him raced away to an early lead and the gap only widened with each point. 

The highly-rated Ahmedabad duo pocketed the first game 15-11. 

Any thoughts of a belated fightback from the Rockets were put to rest as the Smash Masters blended caution with aggression to win the second game 15-7. The first men’s singles between world number 10 HS Prannoy and Son Wan Ho followed the same script even as Wan Ho was able to withstand his opponent’s power-packed smashes to some extent. 

His resistance, however, lasted very briefly as Prannoy tired him out by making him cover the court extensively with the aid of his drop shots and lobs. Prannoy won both the games by an identical scoreline 15-12, 15-12. Later, World No 1 Ying beat Zhang in a one-sided contest to make it 3-0 for Ahmedabad.