Sayaka Sato beats Maria Febe Kusumastuti in first round of the 2011 Singapore Open Super Series
Japan’s ace shuttler, Sayaka Sato, has got rid of Indonesia’s Maria Febe Kusumastuti, in the Women’s Singles first round of the 2011 Singapore Open Super Series, in Singapore, on Wednesday, June 15.
The World Number 19, Sayaka, played remarkable badminton in the opening set of this first round contest, where she remained in complete control of proceedings in the whole game.
The Japanese played well and did not commit any mistakes against a confused Maria.
At the break in the first set, the Japanese shuttler managed a five-point lead against her opponent who played an average game and made many errors in the set. After the interval, Sayaka continued playing positive badminton and won the opening set by a 21-12
difference by taking only 17 minutes.
The Indonesian quickly changed her strategy in the second game and started to play with variation to keep her opponent guessing where the bird will land. Her changed tactics worked well as she was ahead at 11-8 in the opening part of the set.
After taking rest for one minute, the Japanese also changed her tactics but could not stop the aggressive Indonesian, who started to execute powerful smashes to put more pressure on her rival. Sayaka failed to control her challenger and lost the set by a
score of 18-21, in 20 minutes.
The final game was an excellent contest between the two talented shuttlers, who were playing at their best. At the interval, the Japanese was slightly ahead of the Indonesian by taking a one-point lead at 11-10.
However, after the interval, Sayaka executed some impressive strokes at the net which earned her a good lead. She spared no chance for Maria and finished up the match by winning the third set in 18 minutes with a 21-16 margin. The concluding result of this
56-minute Women’s Singles straight-set match was 21-12, 18-21 and 21-16.
In the second round, the Japanese shuttler will fight against Tine Baun of Denmark, who is the sixth seed in this championship.
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