Shintaro Ikeda – Reiko Shiota crush Lu Kai – Qianxin Zhong in semi-final: Russian Open Grand Prix
Japan’s Shintaro Ikeda and Reiko Shiota proved their supremacy in the game by beating China’s Lu Kai and Qianxin Zhong, in the Mixed Doubles semi-final of the 2011 Russian Open Grand Prix, in Russia, on Saturday, July 2.
World Number 16, Shintaro and Reiko, who are top seeds in the Mixed Doubles category of the Russian Open, thrashed the Chinese couple in a convincing fashion in two games, by spending 40 minutes in the court.
The first game of the match was absolutely thrilling, where the both couples played to their full potential. The strong parallel pushes, coupled with net taping and powerful smashes made the match quite entertaining for the Russian crowd, which turned out in huge numbers to watch the best players contesting for a place in the final.
As the match progressed, the speed of the game also increased as both pairs put up a fabulous show of quality badminton. The score reached at the crucial stage of 20-20, where both pairs took the speed of the game to the highest level. The Japanese couple played smart badminton at this point and managed to grab the opening set by a 24-22 margin, after working hard for 25 minutes.
Shintaro and Reiko demonstrated a stunning performance in the second set of this Mixed Doubles quarter-final fight, as they dominated the game from the very first points. Lu Kai and Qianxin failed to handle the pressure throughout the match and the duo missed some easy opportunities to score points.
The Japanese pair kept good control over the pace of the game by playing aggressive badminton, which helped them in winning the second set with a striking difference of 21-12, in just 15 minutes. Shintaro and Reiko finished-off the quarter-final fight in two-sets of 40 minutes, by a margin of 24-22 and 21-12.
In the final encounter, Shintaro and Reiko will fight against Russia’s Alexandr Nikolaenko and Valeri Sorokina, who beat Japan’s Kenichi Hayakawa and Matsutomo Misaki, in the quarter-final match of the event.
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