Hong Kong Open Super Series: Muhammad Hafiz Hashim ousts Rajiv Ouseph in Men’s Singles first round
Malaysia’s experienced shuttler, Hafiz Muhammad Hashim surges into Men’s Singles second round as he has overpowered England’s Rajiv Ouseph in the first round of the 2011 Hong Kong Open Super Series, on Wednesday, November 16, in Hong Kong.
Hafiz, who is currently World Number 40, displayed tremendous performance against the World Number 33 Ouseph and won the thrilling rubber-set battle by spending 58 minutes in the court. He played wonderful badminton with a great touch of confidence as his
strokes were landing in the perfect areas and won the fight in 58 minutes.
The opening set of the match was superb when both men displayed their wonderful skills and remained close in the first half. Initially, Hafiz remained struggling to move freely as his opponent was playing with impressive variations in his strokes. However,
the Malaysian remained close until the break.
After the break, the Malaysian tried to take lead but his opponent was playing safe badminton and avoided to execute any extraordinary or unusual strokes. Hafiz played well in the first game but not enough to win it as he lost by a tight margin of 23-25
in 23 minutes.
It was a completely different game in the second set when the Malaysian took control of the pace and made his opponent work hard for every single point. The opening half remained close but in the second half, Hafiz dominated the game with his wonderful skills.
The Malaysian remained successful in levelling the match as by clinching the game with a score of 21-16 in 17 minutes.
The deciding game of this Men’s Singles opening round contest was quite interesting as both shuttlers played to their full potential with the maximum speed. The exchange of long rallies in the first part of the set created more thrill in the match.
However, Hafiz took control of the pace and remained dominant in the concluding phase. His positive and composed play in the ending points made his position strong. He won the deciding set by a 21-18 score in 18 minutes. This thrilling rubber-set contest
ended in 58 minutes by a close margin of 23-25, 21-16 and 21-18.
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