London Olympics: Li Xuerui claims Women’s Singles gold medal to steal limelight
China’s young and passionate shuttler Li Xuerui stole the limelight on the final day of badminton event when she claimed Women’s Singles gold medal after delivering a stunning performance against her higher ranked compatriot Wang Yihan at the 2012 London Olympics on Saturday, August 4, in London.
The World Number Three Xuerui, who has been impressive in her campaign throughout the tournament, put up staggering show in the title match and overpowered the World Number One and top seed Yihan in a nail-biting contest.
The lower ranked Xuerui was in superb form as she clinched the first game easily but failed to stop her rival from taking the second set. However, she fought hard in the final set and won the match with a reasonable margin on the board.
On the other hand, the top seeded Yihan was the favourite to win the match but she failed to cope up with the speed and control of her rival and eventually lost the physically demanding contest that ended up in rubber games.
The opening game was interesting for the huge crowd at Wembley Arena as both Chinese shuttlers put up superb show of top quality badminton.
However, it was Xuerui who started to change things around by occupying the driving seat and manipulated all loopholes of her rival to set up a reasonable lead until the break.
After the interval, Xuerui continued her positive and aggressive play on court and showed no mercy to her rival all the way to wrap up the game with a 21-15 margin on the board.
In the second game, both ladies played with intensity and aggression and remained close until the one-minute break.
After the mid-game interval, they continued playing remarkable badminton and reached at the breath-taking stage of 21-21 when tired looking Xuerui failed to play well and lost the set with a margin of 21-23.
In the deciding game, both shuttlers progressed closely from the opening points and no one could manage a reasonable lead until the ending phase.
At this crucial stage, Xuerui showed her brilliance and took the final set with a 21-17 score on the board.
The third seeded Xuerui won the Women’s Singles gold medal by finishing off the final battle with a close margin of 21-15, 21-23 and 21-17.
Tags: