Cuba badminton tournament: Ramdhani, Haynes open account on winning note

The Guyanese duo of national badminton players in Priyanna Ramdhani and Akili Haynes began competing in the XXII Torneo Internacional de Badminton Giradilla 2024 at the “Ciudad Deportiva” Sport City Hall, Havana, Cuba on Thursday.
While the pair shone in their individual match-ups and their mixed doubles division, Ramdhani was not as fortunate in the women’s doubles category.
In the men’s singles Round of 32, Haynes came up against Jose Leandro Labrada Soler and found favour in a gruelling three-set match, 15-21, 21-19, 22-20. As such, Haynes has booked his spot in the next round and will continue play in round 2 (Round of 16) today.

Over in the women’s singles division, Ramdhani secured back-to-back victories, to secure her spot in the quarter-final round. In the Round of 32, Ramdhani took on Angela Gina Pita Sanchez and defeated her opponent 21-3, 21-3. Then, in the Round of 16, Ramdhani again made light work of her opposition, Ginnet Cuellar Galvez, securing a victory 21-10, 21-12.
As such, Ramdhani will suit up for play in the quarter-finals today.
The Guyanese duo in Cuba continued on the trail of good fortunes, after securing a bye in the Round of 16 of the Mixed Doubles Division. They were scheduled to compete in that Round on Thursday evening.
However, it was not all wins for the Guyanese as Ramdhani suffered a loss in the women’s doubles Round of 16, alongside her partner, Chequeda Boulet of Trinidad and Tobago. The duo faced a tough test against Taymara Oropesa Pupo of Cuba and Fabiana Silva of Brazil, which they lost 21-19, 21-13.