GUYANESE players Narayan and Priyanna Ramdhani both won in their first two rounds of matches in the individual championships of the XIX Pan American Junior Championships which is being played in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Having breezed past their first round opponents on the opening day (Sunday), the Ramdhanis continued their impressive showing in the second round to secure their places in the Quarter-Finals, while Narayan has secured for himself, a quarter-final place in the Under-13 mixed doubles.
On the opening day of the tournament which is being played at the Pebelon de Tennis de Mesa, Parque del Este Santo Domingo arena, Priyanna Ramdhani defeated home girl Cindy Rodriguez 21-8, 21-9 in a Girls’ Under-11 singles encounter.
She returned later to team up with Jamaica’s Jordan Hydol-Smith to defeat Danny De La Cruz and Ralitsa Wong in the first round of the Under-13 mixed doubles.
Not to be left out, her brother Narayan first defeated Isaac Lopez 21-9, 21-8 in the first round of the Boys’ Under-13 competition, after which he teamed up with Jamaica’s Ester Reynolds to overcome De La Cruz and Wong in an Under-13 Mixed doubles contest.
While the Ramdhani siblings were flying the Golden Arrowhead proudly, Noel Shewjattan suffered a loss in the Boys’ Under-15 category, going down to Ecuador’s E. Zambrano Solano 14-21, 8-21, but he is expected to rebound.
The results of the opening matches for the Guyanese players on the opening day are as follows:
Under-11 Girls’ Singles 2: Priyanna Ramdhani (GUY) defeated Cindy Rodriguez (DR) 21-8, 21-9.
Under-13 Boys Singles Round 1: Narayan Ramdhani (GUY) defeated Isaac Lopez (DR) 1-9, 21-8.
Under-15 Boys’ Singles Round 1: E. Zambrano Solano (ECU) defeated Noel Shewjattan (GUY) 21-14, 21-8.
Under-11 Mixed Doubles Round 1: Priyanna Ramdhani (GUY)/Jordan Hydol-Smith (JAM) defeated the number three seeds Matthias Lai/Michelle (USA) 21-8, 19-21, 21-14.
Under-13 Mixed Doubles Round 1: Narayan Ramdhani (GUY)/Ester Reynolds (JAM) defeated Danny De La Cruz (DOM)/Ralitsa Wong (TRI) 21-12, 21-14.
On the second day:
Under-11 Girls’ Singles Round 3: Priyanna Ramdhani (GUY) defeated Lauren Villalobos (Costa Rica) 21-5, 21-8.
Under-13 Boys’ Singles Round 2: Narayan Ramdhani (GUY) defeated Alexander Hernandez (Venezuela) 21-4, 21-3.
Under-13 Mixed Doubles Round 2: Narayan Ramdhani (GUY)/Ester Reynolds (JAM) defeated  Shea Martin/Amanda Haywood (Barbados) 21-16, 14-21, 14-21. 
The Tournament is being played at the Pebelon de Tennis de Mesa, Parque del Este, Santo Domingo, and apart from Guyana , other countries such as Canada, Dominican Republic, USA, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, Barbados, Jamaica, Brazil, Costa Rica, Mexico, El Salvador, Venezuela, Ecuador, Mexico, and Puerto Rico are contesting championship honours in the tournament.
Meanwhile, the Guyana Badminton Association (GBA) would like to thank the following for making this tour a success: Ramroop Furniture Store, C&V Shipping, P. Singh, HPS Corporate Services Inc., North American Resources, Ramchand’s Auto & General Store, Phil Geborde, Elizabeth Hughes, Teresa De Freitas, Republic Bank, Janet Chung-Bordina & NPI Communications Inc.