Maldives International Badminton Challenge: Andrew Smith storms into Men’s Singles quarter-final
England’s talented player Andrew Smith displayed a gutsy performance and stormed into Men’s Singles quarter-final after crushing Thailand’s Boonyakorn Thumpanichwong in round-of-16 contest at Maldives International Badminton Challenge 2012 on Thursday, May
31, in Maldives.
Smith, who has been seeded at number 6 in Men’s Singles main draw, put up tremendous show while playing against his Thai opponent and ended up the fight with a comprehensive score.
The higher ranked Smith has been playing superb badminton in the tournament and continued his power play in the round-of-16 as well where he thrashed his rival in straight games by taking just 33 minutes in the court.
On the other hand, Boonyakorn played to his maximum potential but failed to shake the boat of his English opponent and easily lost the contest with a one-sided score on the board.
In the first game, Smith showed his brilliance from opening rallies when he took over the control from his rival and created pressure on his rival by setting up a remarkable lead on the board until the mid-game interval.
After the break, the English man continued his killing performance against his Thai rival without dropping the pace of rallies at any stage.
He did not lost his focus in the court and easily wrapped up the first game with a stunning 21-13 score on the board.
In the second game, Boonyakorn tried to play positive badminton and also managed to stop the aggression of his English opponent but failed to maintain his speed and remained behind until the one-minute break.
In the meanwhile, Smith tried to take an early lead but failed to create a comfortable gap and was slightly ahead of his rival until the end of opening half.
After the interval, Smith geared up his speed and took over the control from his opponent by hitting powerful smashes on the side lines.
He maintained the pace of rallies at the highest level and won the second game with a margin of 21-15.
Smith emerged as the winner in this pre-quarter-final contest against Boonyakorn in straight sets with a sensational 21-13 and 21-15 score on the board.
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