Russia Open Grand Prix: Zulfadli Zulkiffli stuns Ivan Sozonov to storm into Men’s Singles semi-final
Malaysia’s Junior World Champion Zulfadli Zulkiffli stormed into Men’s Singles semi-final after delivering a staggering performance against the higher ranked local rival Ivan Sozonov in quarter-final clash at the 2012 Russian Open Grand Prix at Vladivostok,
Russia, on Friday, June 29.
The un-seeded Zulfadli put up a spirited show of attacking badminton for 30 minutes and toppled the home favourite Sozonov who was the fourth seed in Men’s Singles main draw of the tournament.
The lower ranked Zulfadli played to his maximum potential against his Russian opponent and remained dominant in all areas of the court to register a spectacular victory over Sozonov in straight games.
The fourth seeded Sozonov, in the meanwhile, could not stretch his winning run in his home tournament as he failed to deal with the fireworks of his young Malaysian opponent and bowed down to him in straight sets with a comfortable margin.
In the first game, Zulfadli stunned his rival and also the Russian crowd by playing flawless badminton.
The Malaysian unleashed his jumping smashes coupled with impressive net killings to set up an incredible lead of 11-2 until the one-minute interval.
After the interval, Sozonov tried to play hid normal game but failed to shake the confidence of his spirited opponent throughout the ending phase.
In the meanwhile, Zulfadli was focused and quick in taking the bird early and easily bagged the first game of this quarter-final battle with a stunning 21-13 score on the board.
In the second game, Sozonov gave a good fight in opening rallies but failed to stop his rival from setting up a lead of 11-8 until the mid-game break.
After the interval, Zulfadli became aggressive again by injecting more power into his shots and manipulated the loopholes of Russian rival with his incredible craft.
The semi-smashes and tumbling net shots of Zulfadli helped him to maintain his domination over his local opponent. He grabbed the second game with a decent 21-18 score on the board.
The lower ranked Zulfadli thrashed the fourth seeded Sozonov in quarter-final match in two games with a margin of 21-13 and 21-18.
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