Australian Open 2012: Disappointment as all Australian pairs collapse in the event
It was sheer disappointment for the Australian badminton lovers as their national pairs failed to rise in their home event, the Australian Open GP Gold 2012.
The Grand Prix Gold event has entered in quarter-final round but top Australian teams, Glenn Warfe-Ross Smith and Renuga Veeran-Leanne Choo, of Men’s and Women’s doubles event crashed out of the first round.
Australian Open is going to be one of the last tournaments before the Olympic qualification period ends in May. The shuttlers from 28 countries are participating in the event to pocket maximum ranking points as May 3 World Ranking will decide who will have
the honours to be in the 2012 London Olympics.
Badminton World Federation has decided to ensure representation of all continents so top 40 teams can consider themselves in the safe zone which means both Aussie Doubles teams are still in the race despite their failure in the home event.
The male duo of Warfe-Smith knelt down against the Indonesian pair Angga Pratama-Ryan Agung in the opening round.
The 28-year old member of the team, Glenn Warfe defended their below par performance by tagging it as a tough trial in presence of word class shuttlers.
He said, "It's a really big tournament - there's a lot of quality players. You can't expect to get an easy pass in any spot in the draw."
Meanwhile, the female doubles experts Veeran and Choo also failed to register their mark in the event but Renuga Veeran looked satisfied and hoped that this short run against the top players will help them in the London marathon.
She said, "It's good to have matches (against) all these top-10 players. It's a good experience and a good match leading up to the Olympics."
The male duo Warfe-Smith is placed at 35th position in world rankings while the Australian ladies Veeran and Choo hold the 34th spot but if they do not end their losing streak they may lose their stakes in the mega London event.
Their next challenge is Tahiti International Challenge 2012, set to be held from April 19, 2012, and both Aussie teams will be stretching hard to earn some valuable ranking points to elevate their position in world rankings.
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