Arvind Bhat lifts German Open title

MULHEIM AN DER RUHR ( GERMANY): Veteran Indian shuttler Arvind Bhat ended a seven-year title drought as he clinched the German Open Grand Prix Gold with a gruelling three-game upset triumph over 12th seed Dane Hans-Kristian Vittinghus in the men's singles final here.

Ranked 87th in the world, the 34-year-old Bhat 24-22 19-21 21-11 in a one-hour contest to become the first Indian to come out trumps in this tournament.

The former national champion dug from his huge reservoir of experience to outlast the Dane, who he was facing for the first time in his long career.

The first game itself turned out to be a battle of attrition as the two shuttlers matched each other point for point.

But it was the Indian who turned out to be the more enterprising of the two by converting the only game point he earned after his rival had frittered away four.

There was nothing spectacularly distinct in any of the players' game and both seemed wary of approaching the net. The second game followed a similar pattern but it was Vittinghus, who came out trumps this time by converting one of the two game points he earned.

But the Dane lost steam in the decisive third game as the Indian reeled off 11 consecutive points to seal the issue and record a memorable triumph.

Arvind has won six International titles, including the Scottish Open 2004 and the Czech International 2007. He participated in the 2010 Asian games in Guanzhou, China and was in the Indian team for Sudirman Cup 2011.