India Open 2012: Shoji Sato, Shizuka Matsuo make way to second round – Badminton News
Mixed Doubles team Shizuka Matsuo-Shoji Sato of Japan reserved their right to be in second round of Yonex Sunrise India Open after beating Kim Ki Jung-Jung Kyung Eun in first round match on April 25, 2012.
Both teams took 46 minutes to display final results 21-13, 16-21 and 17-21 at the end of opening match.
Korean pair Kim Ki-Kyung Eun had a perfect start against their higher ranked rivals but they could not go with same flow in last stages of match.
On the other hand, Shizuka Matsuo-Shoji Sato utilised their experience to get a grip over match which initially was sliding from their hands.
They were little sluggish in first set and could not match their rival’s speed. They established a slight edge with 6-4 margin but their lead was short lived as the Koreans added four consecutive points to reach at 11-7 total before the interval.
After one-minute break, Kim Ki-Kyung Eun maintained their upper hand and took the score to a 17-11 position. Their opponents never came out of this deficit and surrendered after reading final figure of 21-13.
However, World Number 15 pair Shizuka Matsuo-Shoji Sato showed elevated craft in next game and managed to stay firm in the tussle.
They completely dominated first half of the set with a comfortable margin of 11-6 but after the interval they lost the control for short period of time which allowed their competitors Kim Ki-Kyung Eun to narrow the gap 18-16.
The Japanese made the difference by clinching last three points in a row and finished second set with a favourable margin of 21-16.
This 1-1 match score position brought life back into battle and the decider turned best part of the game.
World Number 27 pair Kim Ki-Kyung Eun was in commanding position with 6-2 total in the beginning but the twosome of Shizuka Matsuo and Shoji Sato struck when it mattered and ended first half 11-9.
After half-time the Koreans stopped them temporarily at 16-16 but the Japanese accelerated their pace and left their challengers far behind with a decisive margin of 21-17.
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