Mohd Arif Abdul Latif grabs his first Men’s Singles title at the Kedah Open 2011 – Badminton news
Malaysia’s Mohd Arif Abdul Latif grabbed his first domestic title in an open event by beating Chan Kwong Beng in the Men’s Singles final of the Kedah Open 2011, at Alor Setar, on Saturday, July 16.
World Number 83, Arif Latif, who is the most talented back-up player in Malaysia in the Men’s Singles category, proved his worth by playing superb badminton throughout the event. He overpowered Chan Kwong in the final after putting up a wonderful show in
the rubber-set fight.
After winning the match, Arif said, “I’m really happy to have finally won an Open title after coming close many times only to lose in the final,” said Arif who was runners-up in the KL Open back in March.
While talking about his performance in the final game of the match, Arif explained, “In the third game, I was trying to kill off the game quickly which isn’t my usual style and it nearly cost me because Chan Kwong caught me off guard on the counter. Luckily
I managed to calm myself and contain him.”
Arif opened the first game in scintillating fashion, as he showed no mercy to his opponent and was in complete control of the game by playing to his full potential. Throughout the opening set, Arif remained focused and clinched the game with a margin of
21-15.
However, Chan Kwong bounced back into the match after putting up a stunning performance in the second set. He geared up his speed from the start and maintained it in throughout the whole set and won the game by a one-sided difference of 21-11.
The final game was a thriller for the crowd, as both shuttlers progressed with the same speed. It was Chan Kwong who first got the match point by reaching at 20-19, but he failed to score as Arif played some superb strokes and saved the game.
The score was 23-23, when Arif managed to grab two consecutive points and finished-off the battle with a 25-23 score on the board. The concluding result of this exciting battle was 21-15, 11-21 and 25-23.
Tags: