Sattawat Pongnairat stuns Kevin Cordon in Men’s Singles second round at XVII Peru International
Sattawat Pongnairat, an upcoming player from USA, created the biggest upset of his career when he defeated the top seed Kevin Cordon of Guatemala in Men’s Singles second round at XVII Peru International 2012 on Thursday, April 12, in Peru.
The un-seeded Pongnairat delivered a spectacular performance and entertained the crowd with his spirited play against Cordon who is ranked at number 24 in Men’s Singles world rankings.
Pongnairat showed his wonderful craft and managed to win the contest in a hard-fought three-set contest by working for 68 minutes in the court.
On the other hand, Cordon failed to live up to expectations as he received a severe treatment from the hands of lower ranked shuttlers and crashed out in the second round.
In the opening set of this contest, both shuttlers played fast badminton and it was Pongnairat who did not let the top seed to take lead until the end of opening half.
Both shuttlers put up superb show and remained close until the one-minute mid-game break.
After the interval, both men again remained aggressive and kept the pace of rallies quite fast. They were impressive in the court and reached at the crucial stage of 21-21.
At this breath-taking stage, Pongnairat executed a few wrong shots and eventually lost the contest with a dramatic 23-25 score on the board.
In the second set, both players again played aggressive game in the opening half and remained close until the 60-second interval.
After the break, Pongnairat changed his tactics and surprised everyone by playing smart badminton and built a reasonable lead on the board.
He remained on track against the top seed in the second set and managed to win it with an impressive score of 21-17.
In the final set, Pongnairat was just incredible in the court as he played flawless game and did not let his opponent to put up strong resistance.
Cordon had no answer to the perfect play of his lower ranked opponent and remained struggling in the whole set.
Pongnairat took the final set with an impressive margin of 21-14. He emerged as the winner in this contest in 68 minutes with an overall margin of 23-25, 21-17 and 21-14.
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