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Gopichand, Popat best

National champions Pulella Gopichand and Aparna Popat easily won the men's and women's singles titles in the fifth BPL badminton tournament in Bangalore today.

Gopichand, after some erratic play in the first game, came back strongly in the second to whip Sachin Ratti of Railways 15-8, 15-1 and etch his name on the glittering trophy for the fifth successive time, while Popat, his team mate at the Prakash Padukone badminton academy and Indian Oil Corporation, smashed an off-colour former national champion Manjusha Kanwar 11-1, 11-3 in less than thirty minutes.

It was Gopichand's second successive Grand Prix tournament triumph, having won the first tournament at Gawahati. Popat picked her first Grand Prix title. She did not participate in the Guwahati event which was won by Kanwar.

Gopichand and Popat became richer by Rs 50,000 and Rs 30,000 respectively, while Ratti and Kanwar pocketed Rs 25,000 and Rs 15,000 respectively.

UNI