2012 London Olympics: Tine Baun ousts Anastasia Prokopenko to surge into pre quarter-final round
Women’s Singles expert Tine Baun took Denmark into pre quarter-final round of London Olympics after thrashing Anastasia Prokopenko in the group match at Wembley Arena on July 31, 2012.
This Group G match kept both shuttlers head-to-head for three gruelling sets before ending with final result of 19-21, 21-15 and 21-16.
Though, the victorious campaigner struggled to gain the right momentum in the beginning but she never looked back after getting on track and prevailed in last two games.
The World Number seven Tine Baun employed all of her experience and brilliance to survive this crucial battle.
On the other hand, the unseeded Russian player could not capitalise on her initial advantage and surrendered tamely.
Anastasia Prokopenko, who holds 37th spot in world rankings, displayed laudable badminton craft on the court and claimed the very first match point.
She adopted an interesting strategy as she kept a low profile in the beginning and then stunned her rival with a brisk attack in later part of the game.
The first half started with both contenders making every effort to gain an early advantage but none of them could hit the target until mid-game break.
After the interval, Anastasia accelerated her pace and made the difference with a couple of uninterrupted points. She maintained this upper hand all the way to final moments and bagged first set with a tight yet decisive margin of 21-19.
However, it was her last success in the mega event as the Danish ace did not give her even a single chance to proceed.
The fifth seeded player Tine Baun stormed back and enthralled the opposing shuttler by playing impeccable badminton.
This time she made swift progress straight away in the beginning and established an unassailable lead before the announcement of the break.
Later part of the game saw the Russian campaigner striving hard to cover the gap but she gave up this futile chase after reading 15-21 score on the board.
The decider was also played in same manner as high ranked Tine Baun dictated her competitor throughout this crucial game and locked the honour with a significant lead.
She did not commit even a single mistake and sealed a splendid victory with favourable figure of 21-16.
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