Du Pengyu tames Sony Dwi Kuncoro in semi-final round of 2013 Victor Korea Open
China’s young but talented shuttler Du Pengyu showed great maturity in his craft and thrashed Sony Dwi Kuncoro in the semi-final round of Victor Korea Open on January 12, 2013.
This Men’s Singles encounter was staged at the local badminton arena of Seoul and both contenders remained head-to-head for 50 minutes.
This straight-set match proved real test for both shuttlers as they had to sweat hard while piling up final figures of 21-12 and 21-17.
World Number five Chinese campaigner laid foundation of his supremacy immediately in the first set and wrapped this show down in just two games.
On the other hand, Sony Kuncoro also played with great precision but lack of good finishing skills paved his path to a woeful exit.
In the opening game, Du Pengyu took some time to get on right track as he remained at the lower end in couple of establishing rallies.
However, he did not allow his rival to capitalise this situation and tipped the scale in his favour with an impressive total of 8.
The spirited Chinese shuttler made best out of this flow and finished first half of the set with a decent margin of 11.
After the mid-game break, he prevailed in couple of uninterrupted rallies and doubled his lead. He did not show any sign of confusion at any stage and bagged this crucial match point with 21-12 score on the board.
The following set was not a one-sided affair like the previous one as this time Kuncoro showed great fighting spirit and kept the audience intact until the game point situation.
He did not repeat previous mistakes and turned his competitor’s plan of an early lead into dust. He matched his challenger’s skills in all departments of the game and remained equal until half time.
After the one-minute interval, both players challenged each other all over the court but neither of them could hit the mark.
Finally, this nerve-racking tussle ended when Du Pengyu registered a winning figure of 21-17 and sealed his straight-set victory.
With this win, he qualified for the final match where World Number one Lee Chong Wei is waiting for him.
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