Axiata Cup: Malaysia Leopards receive severe treatment from Indonesia Rajawali in first semi-final
In the first leg of Axiata Cup semi-final, Malaysia Leopards got a severe treatment from the hands of Indonesia Rajawali by losing to them with a humiliating margin of 0-3 on Saturday, March 31, in Kuala Lumpur.
Leopards have virtually lost their chances to reach in the final as they failed to win even a single point against the gutsy Indonesian shuttlers.
Malaysia Leopards’ coach, Hendrawan said that their primary target was to reach in the semi-final and they have made it. He also said that this fight will give experience to Malaysian youngsters.
He said, "There is not much difference between Rajawali and the Indonesia senior team, Garuda. We didn't have the chance to beat them but the match was worth a lot of experience for our young team."
He further added, "Our semi-final target has been achieved and it has been quality exposure for the players."
In the opening Men’s Singles contest, Misbun Ramdan Misbun from Leopards played against Rajawali’s Tommy Sugiarto.
The Malaysian was clearly lacking the patience against the experienced Tommy, who has been placed at number 16 in Men’s Singles world rankings.
Misbun could not live up to expectations as despite having a reasonable lead in the match; he lost to Tommy by making hasty strokes.
On the other hand, Tommy remained positive and composed throughout the contest and easily won it with a decent margin of 21-17 and 21-16.
In the following fight, Malaysia’s Teo Ee Yi and Nelson Heg lost their fight to Indonesia’s Hendra Gunawan and Alvent Yullianto in straight games.
The Malaysian duo failed to overpower the crafty Indonesians in the opening set. However, they gave a good fight in the second set but lost it with a narrow margin on the score board.
The Indonesians emerged as winners in this Men’s Doubles contest with a 21-15 and 22-20 score on the board.
In the second Men’s Singles contest, Zulfadli Zulkifli of Leopards could not live up to expectations and suffered with a crushing defeat from the hands of Rajawali’s Dionysius Hayom Rumbaka.
Rumbaka was in his prime form as he did not show any mercy to Zulfadli and bagged the contest in straight games with a stunning 21-11 and 21-4 margin on the score board.
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