Malaysians, Indians dominate badminton
Malaysia and India shared the spoils on the final day of badminton competition in the 2010 Commonwealth Games at the Siri Fort Sports Complex on Thursday.
The Malaysians won three gold medals while the Indians took two titles.
Lee Chong Wei downed England's Rajiv Ouseph 21-11 21-7 in the men's singles final to lead the Malaysian charge in Delhi. The world No 1, who led his country to the mixed team event gold last week, showcased his brilliance throughout the match to successfully
defend his title.
Ouseph showed some resistance early in the match and kept pace with Lee until the 14th game. But Lee scored four straight points to extend his lead to 11-7. He scored five straight points at one point to keep Ouseph at bay.
Lee started out well in the second game and never looked back to secure the victory.
"I am happy with my performance," said Lee, who became only the second man to defend the Commonwealth Games men's singles title after compatriot Rashid Sidek in 1994.
Sharing the spotlight with Lee was Koo Kien Keat, who won gold medals in the mixed and men's doubles.
Koo teamed up with Chin Eei h*i to win the mixed doubles crown over top seeds Nathan Robertson and Jenny Wallwork of England 22-20 21-12.
The Malaysian returned to the court two hours later as he and Tan Boon Heong won the men's doubles title over Robertson and Anthony Clark 21-19 21-14.
Koo was happy to achieve a golden double in one day.
"The schedule has been taxing but we were only one match from the gold and I was all pumped up today," he said.
The twin victories plus the gold he won in the mixed team event made Koo the most successful Malaysian athlete in the New Delhi Games.
India also concluded the final day of competition on a high note.
Top seed Saina Nehwal defeated Malaysian Wong Mew Choo to win the women's singles gold medal. The Indian dropped the first game 19-21 but took the next two 23-21 21-13 to secure the title.
"This is the toughest match I have ever played. I have never saved a match point before. It was tough for me to come back into the match after being a game down," said Nehwal, who became the first female Indian shuttler to win a Commonwealth Games gold.
Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa Machimanda claimed the women's doubles title with a 21-16 21-19 victory over Singapore's Shinta Mulia Sari and Yao Lei.
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