Thomas Cup Preliminary Round: Chen Long finds his winning form back against Jen Hao Hsu
China’s spirited young player Chen Long found his winning form back as he defeated Chinese Taipei’s Jen Hao Hsu in the team-event match of Group A at the Thomas Cup Preliminary Round on Wednesday, February 15, in Macau.
China made a clean sweep against Taipei squad by winning the last group match with a superb margin of 5-0.
The World Number Three Long, who lost his battle to Nguyen Tien Minh in the first match of Group A against Vietnam, has finally found something to cheer for.
Long played aggressive badminton against Jen Hao throughout the contest and won it with a comprehensive margin by taking 44 minutes in the court. He did not drop even a single set proving that he is back on the winning track.
In the opening game, Long started his campaign against the Taipei opponent in a completely dominating fashion as he played with precision and did not let his rival to play his normal game.
He remained in complete control and moved Jen Hao everywhere in the court. His powerful smashes landed in the right areas and his opponent failed to return these strokes accurately.
On the other hand, Jen Hao committed many mistakes in the opening half and remained miles behind at 4-11 until the break.
After the break, Long continued his striking play and did not let his opponent to fight back in the game. He was completely focused and won the first game with a comprehensive 21-9 score on the board.
In the second game, Long again took an early lead without letting his rival to level the score even for a single time. He remained ahead of Jen Hao by keeping the pace of rallies at the maximum level and reached at 11-3 until the one-minute interval.
After the break, Jen Hao played a little better game but not enough to stop the progressive run of Long. The higher ranked Chinese remained on the right track and took the second game with an impressive margin of 21-13.
Long ended this 44-minute Men’s Singles fight in straight games with a 21-9 and 21-13 score on the board.
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