Han Li proves her point in Indonesia Open GP Gold – Badminton Feature
China has been producing world class shuttlers since long and latest addition in this league of extraordinary athletes is Han Li who has been raising country’s flag on Women’s Singles flank.
The young but spirited girl, who made her presence felt by performing well in 2007 China Masters, has registered her mark in very short time and now she holds 22nd spot in the World rankings.
Despite participating as an unseeded player in many international events, she alarmed all the world beaters by beating prime shuttlers like Olympic champion Li Xuerui, Sung Ji Hyun, Ratchanok Intanon and Aprilla Yuswandari.
Han Li’s first notable achievement was to raise Women’s Singles trophy in 2012 Australian Open GP Gold and that gave her career a real boost. Later, she was fielded in prestigious events like Badminton Asia Championships, Thailand Open and 2012 China Masters.
However, these tournaments did not bring much for the youngster.
However, Han Li did not have to wait for long as 2012 edition of Indonesia Open took her to new heights. She remained invincible throughout this Grand Prix Gold event and bagged her second international title.
Though, she was up against relatively lower ranked players but still the badminton world saw her employing all the brilliance on court. She proved her class by registering five straight-set victories in a row.
The Chinese badminton queen started her campaign by stamping an inexperienced shuttler Ana Rovita of Indonesia. She showed her intentions by launching an intensive attack and wrapped the showdown in just two games.
After trouncing her first challenger Han Li setup a pre quarter-final clash with another local campaigner Febby Angguni who was an unseeded player in this tournament. This crucial tussle turned into a dead contest as the Indonesian player hardly put any
resistance in both sets of the match.
This win ensures Han Li’s presence in top eight shuttlers of this GP Gold event. She locked horns with Aprilla Yuswandari in the quarter-finals and claimed another straight-set victory in a splendid manner. She subjected her badminton skills to a tough trial
by keeping a low profile in the beginning and then storming back with a strong reply in the end.
The semi-final round saw her swinging arms against another native shuttler Lindaweni Fanetri and this encounter proved real test for the Chinese campaigner as she had to put an extra effort in both segments of the match.
Han Li had a sluggish start and it was felt that she will have to face a woeful exit but then second phase of the battle saw her turning the tables. She won first set with a tight margin of 22-20 and then earned the right to surge into final round by placing
a decisive total of 21-18 in second set.
Now she was standing just one step away from the highest spot on the victory stand. She did not squander this opportunity and cornered Yeni Asmarani in all areas of the game. She claimed the crown by piling up an overwhelming score of 21-12 and 21-10.
With such an impressive outing, Han Li has given a strong statement that there is no danger to China’s supremacy in the arena even if top national shuttlers like Wang Shixian, Wang Xin and Wang Yihan hang up their rackets in the next couple of years.
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