Taufik Hidayat ousts R.M.V. Gurusaidutt in the round-of-16 of Syed Modi Memorial India Open GP Gold
Indonesia’s elite shuttler, Taufik Hidayat, advances into Men’s Singles quarter-final after defeating India’s R.M.V. Gurusaidutt in the round-of-16 of the 2011 Syed Modi Memorial India Open GP Gold, in India, on Thursday, December 22.
The former Olympic and World Champion, Taufik, who is currently World Number 12 and second seed in the Men’s Singles draw of the India Open, had to work hard to beat the spirited Indian in straight games. Gurusaidutt played well and created trouble for the
higher ranked Indonesian in a few rallies but lost the match with a decent score.
The Indonesian was miles ahead of the Indian in the first set and won it in a remarkable way by a huge difference. In the second game, Gurusaidutt played at his best and made his opponent moving around in the court. However, the Indonesian controlled the
game in the concluding phase and took it with a close score.
The Indian put up a fantastic show of top class badminton in opening rallies of the game and remained close to his higher ranked challenger until 5-5. At this stage, Taufik accelerated his speed and injected more power into his shots. Until the break in
the opening game, Taufik was in comfortable position as he reached at 11-5.
After the interval, Gurusaidutt changed his tactics and employed semi-smashes to break the flow of his rival but failed to execute his strokes in the right areas. Taufik was in a relaxed mood as he did not play aggressive game but he was quite focused. He
dictated the pace of the game and finished it with a margin of 21-13.
In the second set, Gurusaidutt displayed his elite skills and proved that he has what it takes to become a world class player. He played with wonderful aggression and reached at 11-6 until the 60-second interval.
After the break, Taufik started to play with aggression and worked well at net. His spinning net shots and powerful smashes disturbed the momentum of his local opponent. He scored five consecutive points and levelled the score at 11-11.
The score progressed closely at this stage and reached at the ending phase where Taufik worked well and took the game with a 21-19 score on the board. The final score of this 46-minute contest was 21-13 and 21-19.
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