British duo of Chris Adcock and Imogen Bankier stand a good chance to qualify for 2012 Olympic Games
Chris Adcock and Imogen Bankier, the top Mixed Doubles shuttlers in Britain, stand a good chance to qualify for 2012 Olympic Games as they have got a higher world ranking and have also reached in the quarter-final of Swiss Open GP Gold 2012, which is in
progress at Basel, in Switzerland.
In the round-of-16 contest, the World Number 14 Adcock and Bankier defeated their compatriots and tough contenders Jenny Wallwork and Nathan Robertson who are currently ranked at number 17 in Mixed Doubles world standings.
The higher ranked Adcock and Bankier had to employ all of their skills to overpower their experienced opponents in a breath-taking fight that took three games of fast and positive badminton from both sides.
However, Adcock and Bankier managed to win the battle with a close margin of 19-21, 21-11 and 25-23 in 68 minutes.
With this victory over their team-mates, Adcock and Bankier have got higher chances to earn more ranking points and secure a berth in 2012 Olympic Games as only one couple in top-16 positions will qualify for the mega event.
While talking about their performance in the round-of-16 match, Adcock said that it was tough to overpower their opponents.
Adcock said, “We were very nervous all day. There were a lot of emotions flying around. But I think we've made a pretty big statement with this win. We knew how important it was for them to win as much as it was for us.”
He also added, “Every tournament is important from now until the end of the qualifying period but at least we have made it to another quarter-final. It was very important for us to perform (to our best) here because they are a good pair and they showed that
today.”
Now, Adcock and Bankier are in quarter-final of Swiss open and are expected to continue their winning run.
The Olympic qualifying round will end on May 2 and Adcock and Bankier want to remain ahead of their team-mates in world rankings in order to confirm their place in Olympic Games, which will start in London from the ending week of July.
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