Mumbai: Former World Champion Yogesh Pardeshi of Pune rolled back the years with a commanding display to clinch the Men’s Singles title at the 11th State Ranking Carrom Tournament held at the MCF Sports Complex, Borivali (West), under the aegis of the Mandpeshwar Civic Federation and the Rotary Club of Borivali.
The 51-year-old veteran defeated Mumbai’s in-form international player Mohammed Ghufran 19-14, 25-15 in the final, showcasing his vast experience and composure under pressure.
In the Women’s Singles final, Ratnagiri’s international player Akanksha Kadam staged a remarkable comeback after losing the opening set to defeat Samruddhi Ghadigaonkar of Thane 2-24, 21-15, 21-15 and lift the title.
Earlier in the men’s semi-finals, Pardeshi stunned Mumbai’s Prashant More with a dominant 25-20, 25-0 victory, while Ghufran overcame former World Champion Sandeep Dive of Jalgaon 23-9, 25-21.
In the third-place playoff, Sandeep Dive defeated Prashant More 17-9, 25-4 to secure the bronze medal.
In the women’s category, Mitali Pathak claimed third place after defeating Sonali Kumari 25-11, 16-16. In the semi-finals, Akanksha Kadam edged past Pathak in a tense three-set encounter 14-12, 4-19, 21-18, while Ghadigaonkar defeated Sonali Kumari 18-20, 21-6, 24-8.
The tournament witnessed participation from several top-ranked players from across Maharashtra and produced high-quality competition throughout the event.
