Thailand Open 2012: Pannawit Thongnuam clears first hurdle in qualifying round
Men’s Singles campaigner Pannawit Thongnuam of Thailand moved one step forward in his race to main draw of SCG Thailand Open after beating Kittiphon Chairojkanjana in qualifying round on June 5, 2012.
This 49-minute encounter concluded in three sets with final results of 16-21, 21-16 and 21-18.
Now Pannawit is scheduled to meet another compatriot Siriwat Matayanumati in next stage of qualifying round and the win will take him to main draw of the home event.
In his opening match, he stood full to his stature after losing first set and stole the limelight by clinching final two games.
On the other hand, Kittiphon could not capitalise his early advantage and crashed out of the tournament.
The first segment of this show started with couple of tight rallies as both shuttlers did not allow their opponent to proceed easily.
They remained close until 6-5 but then young Kittiphon got permit to run free by bagging five consecutive points. He successfully established a notable lead and put a decent margin of 11-5 before the mid-game break.
Though his opponent Pannawit put an extra effort in third quarter of set but it was not enough to come out of the deficit.
Kittiphon Chairojkanjana pocketed first match point with a distinctive total of 21-16 and setup a nerve-racking clash in following game.
Next set was replay of first one but in reverse manner as the suppressed contender Pannawit Thongnuam swept the table in style.
Initially, he was struggling to revive his rhythm as he remained down until five but he found the lost form with four back-to-back points.
He managed to end first half with respectable total of 11 which played vital role in building pressure for his competitor.
After one-minute break, Pannawit committed some unforced errors which allowed his challenger to raise score to 16 but he snatched final two points and finished this tussle with 21-16 margin.
This win locked both competitors in a tense situation as they were now just one step away either from main round entry or a woeful exit.
They earned great deal of respect for their fighting spirits but Pannawit secured the honour by placing decisive figure of 21-18 on the board.
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