German Open Grand Prix Gold: Shon Wan Ho outplays Sho Sasaki in Men’s Singles pre-quarter-final
Korea’s emerging player Shon Wan Ho displayed his elevated skills as he outplayed his higher ranked opponent Sho Sasaki of Japan in Men’s Singles pre-quarter-final of German Open Grand Prix Gold 2012 on Thursday, March 1, in Germany.
Wan Ho, who has been placed at number 17 in Men’s Singles world standings, displayed a sensational performance when he thrashed World Number Six Sasaki, who was the third seed in the tournament.
Sasaki could not produce better form against the in-form Wan Ho and failed to win even a single set. On the other hand, the Korean was in complete control of the match and won it in just 35 minutes.
Wan Ho played thrilling game from the starting points of first set and remained in complete control of rallies. He did not lose his focus and made his higher ranked challenger to work hard in all areas of the court.
Sasaki could not stop the aggressive play of his rival in the opening half and remained struggling in taking the bird early.
He also failed to produce finishing touch in his strokes and remained behind on the points table until the break.
After the interval, the young Korean remained ahead of his higher ranked Japanese rival and did not drop his speed at any stage. He continued performing well and bagged the opening game with a tremendous score of 21-15.
In the second game, Sasaki played better badminton as he also employed aggressive approach and remained close to his Korean opponent until the break.
After the interval, the lower ranked Wan Ho changed his technique and started to execute strokes in the middle of the court to avoid making unforced errors.
The positive and planned game of Wan Ho disturbed the flow of Sasaki who could not place his shots in the right areas.
The Korean continued his impressive play and won the second game with a margin of 21-18.
The final score of this Men’s Singles pre-quarter-final contest was 21-15 and 21-18.
In the quarter-final, Wan Ho will take on Simon Santoso of Indonesia, who tamed Yong Zhao Ashton Chen of Singapore in the other round-of-16 battle.
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