The Ludhiana district badminton tournament got off to an exciting start at Shastri Badminton Hall on Tuesday, with more than 500 players competing across various age groups. Organised by the Badminton Association of Ludhiana (BAL), the tournament was inaugurated by deputy commissioner and BAL president Himanshu Jain, who encouraged young players to pursue sports with dedication and discipline.A player in action during the district badminton championship at Shastri Badminton Hall in Ludhiana on Tuesday. (Manish/HT)BAL chairman MS Grewal, vice-presidents Vipon Dawar and Neeraj Mahajan, general secretary Sulbha Jindal, technical secretary Charanjit Singh, joint secretaries Mangat Sharma and Puneetinder Singh Grewal, along with executive members Anand Tiwari, Arjun Chaudhary and Hemant, were present at the event.The opening day’s action witnessed several convincing victories in the boys’ and girls’ categories. In the Under-11 boys’ singles, Surya Jain defeated Kartik Puri 15-10, 15-1, while Harsharan Singh Baj registered a 15-8, 15-3 win over Reyansh Bajaj. Divyanshu Chona overcame Pratyush Dev 15-12, 15-10 and Agam Bhalla beat Anmol Babkoo 15-11, 15-11. Himonish Dhiman outclassed Hemant Bhanji 15-3, 15-1, while Kunal Rajpurohit advanced after receiving a walkover. Rajvika Duggal also progressed with a comfortable 15-3, 15-7 victory over Navzab Sehgal.In the Under-11 girls’ singles, Aadashpreet Kaur defeated Gunraaz Kaur 15-9, 15-4. Amaira Sukhija moved to the next round after receiving a bye. Shuvi Kaur dominated Akira Jain 15-1, 15-2, while Navika Goel cruised past Elahi Bansal 15-5, 15-0.The Under-13 girls’ singles also produced one-sided contests. Aradhya Kaushal defeated Sudiksha Meena 15-7, 15-4, while Avni Singhsania overcame Vanshika Kapoor 15-7, 15-7. Rajbala Kaur registered a 15-8, 15-8 win over Aisha Khurana and Maanvi defeated Prisha Mittal 15-3, 15-2. Sunder Kaur Namdhari beat Jesnoor Kaur 15-3, 15-2, while Shatakshi Dhiman outclassed Anima Singh 15-2, 15-2. Nitara Sharma defeated Yeshnaa Kohli 15-3, 15-2, Avleen Kaur overcame Gauri Malhotra 15-3, 15-6, Tania Dhiman defeated Sehar Pahwa 15-4, 15-6, and Prabhnoor Kaur produced the most dominant performance of the day by defeating Talzmeen Kaur 15-0, 15-1.The tournament will continue over the coming days with players competing in different age categories as they battle for district titles and a place among Ludhiana’s top badminton talent.