Hung Ling Chen – Wen Hsing Cheng land a podium berth in Australian Open Grand Prix Gold 2012
Chinese Taipei’s experienced players Hung Ling Chen and Wen Hsing Cheng landed a podium berth as they reached into Mixed Doubles final after beating Japan’s Kenichi Hayakawa and Misaki Matsutomo in semi-final battle of the Australian Open Grand Prix Gold 2012 at Sydney, Australia, on Saturday, April 7.
The higher ranked Hung Ling and Wen Hsing, who were second seeds in the championship, had to play to their maximum potential to chuck out Kenichi and Misaki in a thrilling contest.
Hung Ling and Wen Hsing started their campaign in a quivering manner and lost the first game.
However, they fought back in the match and took the following games to surge into Mixed Doubles final.
On the other hand, the Japanese shuttlers remained unlucky as they were quite close to win the match in straight games when their higher ranked Taipei opponents managed to escape defeat in the second set. The Japanese lost the match in three games in 46 minutes.
In the opening set, Kenichi and Misaki played to their full potential and remained successful in dominating the pace of rallies.
Until the one-minute interval, they were in strong position on the board by taking an 11-6 lead.
After the break, Hung Ling and Wen Hsing tried to push their rivals on back foot by playing fast badminton but failed to prove their worth and lost the set with a deficit of 18-21.
In the second game, Hung Ling and Wen Hsing were in control at the opening phase and remained ahead at 11-6 until the break.
After the interval, the Japanese shuttlers took over the control by playing aggressive game and ended the domination of their higher ranked opponent.
The Japanese reached at 19-17 when Hung Ling and Wen Hsing played superb badminton and scored four points in a row and managed to win the set with a 21-19 score on the board.
In the deciding game, Hung Ling and Wen Hsing were everywhere in the court. They did not spare any chance for Japanese couple to fight back in the match and bagged the set with a one-sided score of 21-6.
The Taipei shuttlers won this Mixed Doubles semi-final encounter in 46 minutes with a margin of 18-21, 21-19 and 21-6.
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