A gruelling start for Sung Hyun, Yeon Seong in group stage – London Olympics Update
Korea’s prime Men’s Doubles team Ko Sung Hyun-Yoo Yeon Seong narrowly escaped a setback against Adam Cwalina-Michal Logosz in opening match of London Olympics on July 28, 2012.
Though the World Number four team emerged as victor in this Group B match that was played at Wembley Arena but still they had to go all the way to three exhausting sets to read a favourable result of 17-21, 21-7 and 21-13.
Meanwhile, the unseeded pair of Poland earned a great deal of admiration for snatching the first game despite the immense pressure of the mega event.
They displayed laudable fighting skills and alarmed all the contestants with their extraordinary performance in the opening match.
In the first set, Adam and Michal made their intentions clear when they prevailed in a few back-to-back rallies.
They kept their superior rivals confused with their interesting tactics as their plan of action was a blend of power packed attack and deceiving net play.
The Koreans could not figure out this complex strategy and kept trailing behind until 7-11 before the announcement of break.
They made a decent effort in later part of the game but it was not enough to stop the Polish shuttlers from bagging the very first match point with a respectable advantage in 21-17 margin.
However, Sung Hyun and Yeon Seong did not remain at the lower end permanently as they revived their lost touch in second set and outclassed the opposing team in all areas of the game.
This time they did not repeat previous mistakes and established an unassailable lead with 7-2 total. They doubled the impact by registering 11-3 score at half time.
The Polish campaigners looked completely dazzled in later part of the game as they could earn only four out of ending ten points and lost second set with decisive figure of 21-7.
Now both contenders got locked in a tense situation as they were equal with one win each. They remained close until the interval but then the Koreans ruled the court in the final stage of set.
They finished first half with 11-9 but made difference after the break and sealed their victory with a significant result of 21-13.
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