Dominant Dan Bethell secured a brilliant gold at the Fazza Dubai Para Badminton International as he triumphed without dropping a game throughout the competition.
The Paralympic silver medallist eased through the SL3 men’s singles group stage, conceding just 17 points across his two matches, to set up a quarter-final against Thailand’s Mongkhon Bunsun which he won 21-6 21-14.
A tougher test followed against India’s Kumar Nitesh in the last four, with Bethell forced to show all his fighting qualities as he twice came from behind.
Trailing 19-17 in the first game, the Englishman reeled off four straight points to take the lead before coming from 13-8 down in the second to win it 21-17 and seal his place in the final.
Nitesh’s fellow compatriot Pramod Bhagat, Bethell’s opponent in the final at Tokyo 2020, lay in wait and a hard-fought opening game went Bethell’s way 21-17.
The 27-year-old was unstoppable in the second game, winning it 21-8 to seal an excellent triumph.
In the SH6 men’s singles, Krysten Coombs and Jack Shephard met in the quarter-finals after both advanced through the group stage, Coombs finishing second in his pool after being beaten 5-21 13-21 by top seed and eventual winner Chu Man Kai.
The all-English battle in the last eight was as hard fought as ever but Coombs edged it 21-18 21-17 before going down 13-21 13-21 against Frenchman Charles Noakes in the semi-finals.
Rachel Choong fell at the same stage in the SH6 women’s singles. Choong convincingly topped her group and beat Ukraine’s Nina Kozlova 21-12 21-4 in the last eight before being beaten 11-21 6-21 by China’s Lin Shuangbao.
Shephard and Choong were top seeds in the SH6 mixed doubles and booked their place in the last four after coming through an epic group stage clash with Chu Man Kai and Choi Wing Keh (22-20 13-21 21-11).
Once there, however, a different Chinese pair proved too strong as Zeng Qingtao and Lin Shuangbo prevailed 21-14 21-15.
