State teams finish runners-up in Junior National Sepaktakraw Championship
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, December 09 2022:
Both state boys' and girls' teams fell at the final hurdle to settle for second-place finishes in the 28th Junior National Sepaktakraw Championship 2022 which drew to a close on Friday at Patna, Bihar.
In the final of the boys' regu event, Manipur were beaten by Delhi in straight sets.
They lost 12-21, 15-21 to their opponents in their summit clash.
The state boys were unrivalled in the group stage, making a clean sweep of their six league-round matches before they bested Tamil Nadu in the quarterfinal and Bihar in the semifinal.
In the league stage, Manipur outplayed Madhya Pradesh 2-0 in their first match and they followed it up with the same margin of wins against Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Karanataka and Kerala.
The girls' team, on the other hand, suffered a heartbreak 2-1 defeat to Haryana in their title clash that saw Manipur take the first set 21-17 before their opponents staged a stunning turnaround by capturing the next two sets (21-15, 21-17) to seal the title.
Earlier in the quarterfinal, the state girls defeated Assam 21-14, 21-16 and went on to beat Bihar 20-22, 21-18, 21-17 in the semifinal.