Australian Open: Sho Sasaki narrowly defeats Hu Yun in Men’s Singles pre-quarter-final clash
Japan’s top player Sho Sasaki faced a tough resistance in beating Hong Kong’s Hu Yun in Men’s Singles pre-quarter-final clash at 2012 Australian Open Grand Prix Gold in Australia, on Thursday, April 5.
The World Number 6 Sasaki, who is second seed in Men’s Singles draw of the event, had to dig into his arsenal to overpower his talented opponent with a narrow margin on the board.
Sasaki lost the opening game without making an impact. However, he powered his way back and took the second game. In the deciding set, Sasaki remained lucky in the ending phase and won it with a tight margin.
On the other hand, the World Number 21 Yun played to his maximum speed and kept his higher ranked Japanese opponent under pressure in the whole contest. However, he remained unlucky in the ending points of final set and lost the contest with a respectable
margin.
Yun showed his brilliance in the opening set when he matched the speed of his higher ranked opponent and remained in wonderful position. He managed to create pressure on Sasaki who remained close until the end of first half.
After the break, Yun played killing game by executing powerful smashes in all areas and managed dictate the pace of rallies.
Sasaki could not stop the progress of his lower ranked opponent and lost the set with a margin of 15-21.
In the second game, Sasaki was in a completely different mood as he controlled the pace of rallies and also pushed his rival in all corners. He took a comfortable lead in the opening half of second set.
After the break, the second seeded Japanese remained fully focused in the game and ended the set with a one-sided score of 21-11.
In the decider, Sasaki was in full control as he did not face any trouble in taking a lead of 11-5 until the break.
After the interval, Yun played positive badminton and drew near to his higher ranked opponent by reaching at 19-20.
However, Sasaki took the ending point and won the set with a 21-19 score on the board.
The Japanese managed to win this pre-quarter-final encounter in 56 minutes with a difference of 15-21, 21-11 and 21-19.
Tags: