Slovenia International 2012: Jakub Bitman, Alzbeta Basova in the quarter-finals
Mixed Doubles team Jakub Bitman-Alzbeta Basova of Czech Republic secured its berth in quarter-finals of FZ Forza Slovenia International by overwhelming Paul Demmelmayer-Alexandra Mathis on May 11, 2012.
The 39-minute tussle lasted for three gruelling sets and ended with final results 14-21, 21-12 and 21-7.
Jakub and Alzbeta, who are also ranked second in this tournament, displayed commendable fighting spirit to come back from a rough start. They played superior badminton in final two games and saved their honour.
In opening game of the match, lower ranked couple Paul-Alexandra was little sluggish in start as they remained trailing behind the opposing team but they added few quick points in their total and put decent total of 11 before the interval.
After mid-game break, the Austrian pair played with positive attitude and maintained their upper hand in most part of the game.
The twosome of Paul-Alexandra established a notable seven-point advantage which proved final blow to their challengers as they could not come out of this deficit and knelt down after reading concluding margin of 14-21.
However, second set completely belonged to the Czech pair as they outclassed their opponents in all areas of the game. This time they showed unbeatable craft in court to prove their class.
Mixed Doubles experts Jakub and Alzbeta launched a brisk attack and kept their rivals at lower end in first half of the set.
They gained a respectable advantage with some uninterrupted rallies and reached at total of 11 to enter in one-minute break as the leading team.
In later part of the game, they lost focus for short period of time which allowed their opponents to narrow the gap with some back-to-back points.
However, they reinstated their supremacy and wrapped the show with an impressive lead in final total of 21-12.
The Czech campaigners blew away their opponents in the third and final set as well. This time they did not give any counter attack opportunity and dominated the game from very first shot to game point situation.
Jakub and Alzbeta established an unassailable lead before half time and magnified the impact with a gutsy performance in final stages. They sealed 2-1 victory by registering distinctive margin 21-7 on the board.
Tags: