Saturday, July 4, 2009
12:54 PM
ASIAN Youth Games - Singapore Mxed Doubles Bronze Medal Hope Shatters
Japanese aces Asuka Machi and Rika Suzuki pulled off a stunning win against Singapore's Clarence Chew and Isabelle Li in the Mixed Doubles Quarter-finals on at the Toa Payoh Sports Hall.

Coming into the Quarter-finals, Chew and Li had been in imperious form, winning their Round of 32 and 16 match-ups convincingly. They came undone against the Japanese though, losing 7-11, 11-4, 9-11, 6-11 to crash out of the Mixed Doubles event. The paddlers had met earlier last week in a practice match, which Singapore won 3-0. This time round, the tables were turned on them as the Japanese dominated the match, causing Clarence and Isabelle to commit unforced errors.

In the first game, Singapore went ahead 2-0 but struggled to maintain their momentum. Rika and Asuka set up a series of exciting rallies with powerful smashes, which gain them many points. They won 7-11. However, Singapore stormed back to win the second game 11-4 to put them back into contention for a spot in the semi-finals. The Japanese remained calm. They continued to use their powerful forehand smashes which caught Clarence and Isabelle off guard at times. The Japanese duo won 9-11.

Still fighting hard for a place in the Semi-Finals, our youth paddlers built a 6-3 lead. However, they were unable to continue the lead for long. Rika and Asuka played error free to win the next 8 points, booking their place in the Semi-Finals.

The Coach felt that the key turning point of the match came in the third set but the players were unable to capitalise when the scores were locked at 9-8. Clarence's and Isabelle's combination play today was also not up to par.

Singapore will be focusing on their Singles which will be played later in the afternoon.




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