2012 China Masters: Nozomi Okuhara gains access to pre quarter-finals of Women’s Singles event
Japan’s female shuttler Nozomi Okuhara secured a pre quarter-final berth in Li Ning China Masters after thrashing Xue Yao in the opening round on September 12, 2012.
This 47-minute match, played at the local badminton arena of Changzhou in China, prolonged to three hard fought games before ending with final result of 13-21, 21-10 and 21-11.
The victorious shuttler showed great fighting skills as she stood tall despite the losing first set and reserved the right to be in the round of 16.
On the other hand, the native campaigner disappointed her supporters by frittering away a golden chance of a straight-set victory.
Xue Yao showed her class in the opening game as she bagged the first match point with a notable difference.
She made her intentions clear by ruling the court in five consecutive rallies and then showed strong character when the opposing shuttler snatched five points in a row.
She counter-balanced the situation by registering 11-8 total before the interval and then maintained the upper hand also in later part of the game.
The Japanese campaigner made every effort to regain her dominance but she failed to come out of this deficit until the decisive figure of 13-21.
However, she made amends with a strong reply in the very next game. This time Nozomi Okuhara played with the right attitude and fortitude to avoid a straight-set defeat.
She set herself in motion by adding five successive points in her total and then doubled the lead with 11-5 margin at half time.
After one-minute interval, the local shuttler made a swift progress and narrowed the gap but this short campaign was not enough to stop Nozomi who finished this crucial game with a favourable result of 21-10.
The decider was a replay of the second set as the Japanese campaigner showed consistency in her performance and stole the limelight.
She tipped the scale in her favour with a flurry of well placed strokes which took her to a dominating position of 7-2.
She established an unassailable lead with 11-5 margin and then capitalised this advantage to place a 21-11 score on the board.
Now she is scheduled to meet Intanon Ratchanok of Thailand in the pre quarter-finals of this tournament.
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