AWADHE WARRIORS were the dominant side as they defeated the defending champions Chennai Smashers 4-3 in the opening tie of the third season of PBL on Saturday in Guwahati.
Fans couldn't witness a Saina Nehwal vs PV Sindhu showdown as Awadhe put their young shuttler Sai Uttejitha Rao to play the women's singles match.
The opening match was between mixed doubles where Christinna Pedersen/Tang Chung Man defeated the experienced duo of Chris Adcock/Gabrielle Adcock. The Warriors put their team in the lead by winning the match 10-15, 15-5, 15-12.
This was followed by men's singles match where Parupalli Kashyap was playing the trump match for his team Awadhe. And he clinched the much deserved two points to put his team in a comfortable lead of 3-0. He trumped youngster Daniel Farid 15-12, 15-8.
Kidambi Srikanth furthered their lead by 4-0 sealing the deal for Awadhe after he defeated Frenchman Brice Leverdez.
And then the men's doubles duo of Chris Adcock/Lee Yang gave Chennai Smashers their first crucial points as they defeated Hendra Setiawan/Or Chin Chung 15-11, 10-15, 15-11.
The final match of the tie saw PV Sindhu playing the trump match against Sai Uttejitha. The former won 15-10, 15-9 to add some more valid points to her side.
Awadhe sealed the opening tie with a 4-3 win over the Smashers.