Biratnagar, February 19

Prince Dahal completed the hat-trick when he won the men's singles title of the Li-Ning 12th Pushpalal Memorial National Ranking Badminton Tournament here today.

The Nepal Police Club shuttler, Dahal defeated Tribhuvan Army Club's Praful Maharjan 21-14, 21-17 in the final to make it three in a row in the competition for top 16 ranked players. Dahal beat Maharjan for the second time in a week after his victory in the final of the first Chief Minister Sagarmatha National Ranking Badminton Tournament in Itahari.

Dahal received Rs 50,000 along with medal, trophy and certificate and he will receive a scooter for winning three straight titles. Runner-up Maharjan got Rs 30,000. NPC's Bishnu Katuwal and TAC's Rukesh Maharjan finished joint third and they earned Rs 14,000 and Rs 12,500 respectively.

In women's singles for the top 12 shuttlers, TAC's Anumaya Rai won the title after she came from a set down for a 18-21, 21- 17, 21-6 victory over Nepal APF Club's Jessica Gurung. Gurung had won the title in Itahari last week but Rai defeated her to claim second straight title of the tournament along with Rs 50,000. Gurung earned Rs 28,500. National champion Rasila Maharjan and Prathana Deuba of TAC came third and they got Rs 12,500 and Rs 11,000 respectively.

Likewise, APF's Sujan Thapa won the men's singles title in the competition for players outside top 16. Thapa defeated TAC's Pabin Linthep 21-16, 21-13 in the final. TAC's Himal Chand and APF's Pranish Singh Thakuri came third. In women's section event for the players outside top 12, TAC's Bishna Bista beat Jhapa's Anjana Rai 19- 21, 21-19, 21-19 in final. Rina Tamang of Panchthar and Tisha Rani Shakya of TAC finished joint third.

NPC shuttler Dahal made it a double when he teamed up with Bishnu Katuwal to beat APF's Bijeet Thapa and Jeevan Acharya 14-21, 21-9, 21-17 in men's doubles final. TAC duo Praful Maharjan and Rukesh Maharjan came third along with Kaski's Bidhan Adhikari and Pabin Linthep. TAC duo Prathana Deuba and Anu Maya Rai won women's title with a 21-12, 21-19 victory over APF's Shobha Gauchan and NPC's Nita Lamsal. APF's Jessica Gurung and Sunaina Mukhiya came third. Roshan Saud of APF and Rihana Sherchan of TAC won the U-17 titles. Saud defeated TAC's Anil Malla 21-12, 21-15 in boys' singles final, while Sherchan beat fellow TAC shuttler Tisha Rani Shakya 21-10, 21-16 in girls' section final. Likewise, Kathmandu duo Sanjay Kapali and Shyam Lama claimed the above-45 doubles title, while Panchthar duo Ram Raj Angdembe and Sanjay Bhaktaraj won above-55 section title.

A total of 192 players took part in 10 events of the tournament organised by National Badminton Association under Nepal Sports Federation. The tournament carried a total cash purse of Rs 598,000. Former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli handed over the prizes to the winners.

A version of this article appears in the print on February 20, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.