Joachim Fischer, Christinna Pedersen wear bronze medals around their neck - London Olympics Update
Things finally went in favour of Denmark’s Mixed Doubles team Joachim Fischer-Christinna Pedersen as they claimed bronze medal in London Olympics after beating Tontowi Ahmad-Liliyana Natsir on August 3, 2012.
This play-off round match was played at Wembley Arena and both contenders displayed commendable badminton craft on the court before registering final margin of 21-12 and 21-12.
The Danish pair showed superior finishing skills and locked the honour by sealing an avenging victory over Tontowi-Liliyana who thrashed them in 2011 World Championships quarter-finals at this same venue.
On the other hand, the World Number four Indonesian team’s magic could not prevail and they failed to save their honour in this crucial encounter.
Fischer and Pedersen, who were placed at fourth spot in tournament ranking, performed beyond expectations and stunned the higher ranked rivals in both games.
They laid foundation of their supremacy straight away in opening set when they fetched few successive points in the beginning.
They kept on stepping forward at steady pace and doubled the lead in next couple of rallies. They did not lose focus at any stage of first half and placed a mountainous total of 11 before the announcement of break.
The twosome of Tontowi-Liliyana, who was hot favourite for this showdown, made every effort to counter-balance the situation but all went in vain.
They could not come out of their competitors’ influence throughout the second half and received a severe 12-21 blow.
Next game saw the World Number three pair Fischer-Pedersen in prime touch as both partners showed superb coordination and outclassed their challenger with an unbeatable strategy.
This time they employed unusual tactics as their attack was a blend of power packed smashes and masterly crafted drop net shots.
They started the ball rolling by gathering valuable points without any interruption in the first half. They mounted pressure by putting a convincing figure of 11 before the interval.
Fischer and Pedersen, who lost semi-final match to the ultimate winners Zhang Nan-Zhao Yunlei, strived hard to make amends by taking the bronze medal back home.
They raised their lead to nine points in third quarter and finished this tussle with a significant score of 21-12.
Tags: