Daren Liew outshines Tan Kian Meng in group stage of National Circuit GP Finals – Badminton News
Men’s Singles shuttler Daren Liew performed exceptionally well in his first group match of Maybank National Circuit Grand Prix Finals and registered his first victory on December 27, 2012.
This Group A match was staged at the local badminton arena of Alor Setar, Malaysia and the top seeded player Daren Liew stamped Tan Kian Meng with a staggering knock.
Both contenders remained head-to-head for just two games and this short lived tussle ended with final figures of 21-18 and 21-15.
World Number 16 Daren established an early advantage by clinching the opening match point and then served notice of his supremacy by winning the second set.
In first set of the match, he was bit sluggish in the beginning but then few back-to-back productive rallies provided him the required the momentum.
The Malaysian campaigner made best out of this flow and levelled the score with 5-5. He did not lose focus and finished first half of the set with an upper hand.
Daren Liew maintained a significant difference on the points table and placed a respectable total of 11.
After the mid-game break, he played with great precision and kept his rival under control. He bagged valuable points without any interruption and strengthened his grip in third quarter of the set.
Though, Kian Meng made a swift progress and narrowed the gap in final stage but it was not enough to avoid a 18-21 defeat.
The following game did not bring much for him as Daren Liew rule the court from very first stroke till the last one.
Initially, he took time some time to get on right track but then never lost the grip after getting into commanding position.
His cautious approach allowed Kian Meng to establish a decent lead but then the Malaysian shuttler turned the tables with an impressive knock.
He started the beating after 9-11 margin and managed to catch his opponent at 13-13. He bagged eight out of ending ten points and raised hands as victor after putting 21-15 score on the board.
With this timely win, Daren setup his next clash with another compatriot player Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayup in group stage of Maybank National Circuit Grand Prix Finals.
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