Boonsak Ponsana roars to reclaim Singapore Open title after five years – Badminton Update
Men’s Singles campaigner Boonsak Ponsana of Thailand amazed everybody with his thundering performance in the Li Ning Singapore Open 2012 which ultimately helped him to regain his title after five years.
World Number 32 shuttler won Super Series first time in 2007 but he could not repeat history later and kept on drawing a blank in every edition.
However, his hard work paid off in recently concluded episode as he raised his country’s flag in Men’s Singles event.
The Thai campaigner stunned big guns like Muhammad Hafiz Hashim, Dionysius Rumbaka, Wang Zhengming and Tien Minh Nguyen in his successful journey.
Boonsak started this splendid victory saga by toppling veteran Malaysian Hafiz Hashim in his opening match.
This first round contest prolonged to 50 minutes and both players employed all their brilliance to oust their opponent.
First set completely belonged to Hafiz as he outclassed his challenger in all areas of game to enter finishing total of 21-10.
However, Boonsak woke up in time and put his competitor’s expedition to halt in very next game. He levelled match score with 21-14 and then bagged a splendid win with 21-18 margin in the decider.
This crucial win setup his pre quarter-final clash with an inexperienced but talented Indian shuttler R.M.V Gurusaidutt.
Both contenders were poles apart in terms of expertise and Boonsak relished full benefits of his better understanding of the game.
The 30-year-old player wrapped the show in just two games with overwhelming figure of 21-12 and 21-8 and ensured his presence in quarter-finals of the event.
There was no smooth road for him after this match as he had to face high ranked opponents in the final rounds.
In the round of eight, he was up against World Number 19 Dionysius Rumbaka who pushed him on the back-foot by dominating very first set of match.
Though, Boonsak chased his competitor all the way to game point situation but he could not avoid a 21-23 defeat.
However, he made amends and snatched a semi-final seat by registering 21-7 and 21-18 total in last two segments of the show.
The semi-final round brought World Number 11 Tien Minh in front of him but the Thai campaigner dazzled Vietnamese with a lustrous performance.
He set the foundation of his dominance by pocketing very first match point with 21-12 and then finished this battle with decisive figure of 21-19 in third set.
Tien Minh, who was also sixth seeded player of the event, had to bid farewell after this 2-1 defeat.
Last chapter of this saga was even more fascinating as Boonsak Ponsana finished this marathon in memorable way.
The opposing finalist Wang Zhengming of China could not break his spell and paved a path to victory for Thai campaigner with 21-18 and 21-19 margin.
This timely win before the 2012 London Olympics has alarmed his opponents across the globe and badminton critics are declaring him potential dark horse of the mega event.
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