SINGAPORE OPEN 2012 R32 – Heart attacked by Singapore women’s doubles

Among so many matches today at the Li-Ning Singapore Open Superseries, the women’s doubles between Shinta Mulia Sari / Yao Lei and Vivian Hoo / Woon Khe Wei in the evening caught the attention of 80% of the local spectators while the biggest upset of the day came when Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen ousted one of only two top seeds who came to play.

By Lee Suetyan, Badzine Correspondent, reporting live from Singapore.  Photos: Yves Lacroix for Badmintonphoto (live)

Of course, Shinta Mulia Sari / Yao Lei (pictured) didn’t disappoint the local crowd because the Singaporeans, who wore sharp orange shirts today, kept Singapore’s flag flying as the young duo defeated Malaysia’s Hoo/Woon in an hour and four minutes.

Shinta/Yao took the first game without any barrier. However, they looked a bit nervous towards the end of the second game. The second game was very tight at 15-all, until the Malaysian pair got a game point at 20-18 and eventually won the game at 21-18.  In the third game, Shinta/Yao were trailing behind for a few points at the interval, but they seemed to have changed their strategy after the interval. The scores continue to be tight after the interval until the Singapore earned themselves a match point and wrapped up the match 21-18, 18-21, 21-18. The fans and the crowd were so happy and excited after their victory.

“Our standards are almost the same. We played with them at the India Open two months ago and we won in 3 sets,” Yao said after the match.  “Today, I feel very happy to win my first match in my home ground. After we had lost the second set, we were actually trying to figure out a new strategy in the third set. The strategy turned out to be a successful one in the end.”

“While we were leading that time, I didn’t feel we could lose the second game,” said Shinta.  “In the third set, we didn’t think of anything, just played the way we have been. When our opponents were leading in the third set, we were a bit nervous and we could feel the pressure is there.  However, I told Yao ‘Let’s play and fight for it, let’s close the gap point by point.’

“At the beginning of the third game, we tried a few strategies, but they still didn’t work. Thus, we then decided to speed up.

“I like the crowd, they help me a lot. I feel more excited when the crowd is shouting and cheering for us. I didn’t feel pressure when they were cheering. I like their way of cheering,” said Shinta.

Meanwhile, the biggest upset in today’s round of 32 must be Viktor Axelsen (pictured below) from Denmark defeating the 1^st seed Sho Sasaki from Japan at a score of 21-10, 15-21, 21-12.  Like the Chinese singles players, Viktor Axelsen also carries the responsibility to excel for Denmark as his veteran team-mate Joachim Persson had retired from his qualification match yesterday and Peter Gade and Jan O Jorgensen are absent from Singapore altogether.

Viktor is simply one of the best of the juniors because he has it all: the big smashes, the solid defence and technical play. He totally outclassed the 1^st seed Sho in the third game today. Despite the gang of Japanese fans sitting behind Sho, supporting him during his match, Sho just couldn’t manage to pull off a win.

“I am really happy about my win today as Sho Sasaki is a very tough player.  He is the world no. 6.  I am satisfied with my performance today it’s a big thing to me to beat a player likes him because he is one of the best players I would like to beat,” said Axelsen.

“It was a good experience for me in the World Junior Championships last year.  I tried my best to keep cool despite losing in the final. There will be down times and good times in the career, so I just take all the best and try to work harder.

“Just a moment ago, I defeated the world no.6.  I think I am getting nearer to becoming one of the top players in the world. Currently I am not a top 10 player yet, but I will keep working harder to be there. At times, I am getting stronger and I am doing a lot of physical stuff. I am a big guy, so I have to practice more on my movement before I can be in the top 10.”

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