US Open GP Gold 2012: Riichi Takeshita demolishes Fang Yang Lim in Men’s Singles quarter-final
Japan’s in-form shuttler Riichi Takeshita proved his elevated craft as he powered his way into Men’s Singles semi-final after demolishing Malaysia’s Fang Yang Lim at quarter-final clash in US Open GP Gold 2012 on Thursday, July 5, in USA.
Takeshita, who participated in US Open as an un-seeded shuttler, turned into one of the major contenders for the title when he ousted the spirited Fang Yang in a mouth-watering contest by ending it up in three games.
Things were not favourable for Japanese shuttler in opening set as he could not do well on court and lost the game but powered his way back to take the second set with a decent score. Nevertheless, Takeshita showed his brilliance in the final game and proved
his superiority on court by winning the battle in 69 minutes.
In the meanwhile, Fang Yang also displayed his impressive craft when he played at his best in opening set. However, his chances to win the match got scanty when he lost the second game with a tight margin. In the decider, he could not maintain his power
play and lost the fight with a decent score.
In the first game, both men showed strong character as they played with passion and reached at 6-6 when Takeshita committed a few unforced errors which helped his Malaysia rival to take an 11-7 lead until the break.
After the interval, Takeshita tried to defy all odds against him to make the score levelled but failed to stop the attacking play of his opponent and lost the set with a margin of 16-21.
The following set was nail-biting as both shuttlers were toe-to-toe this time by playing to their maximum speed and also remained close on board until the ending points.
However, it was Takeshita who managed to put up staggering performance at this crucial stage and took the game with a narrow margin of 21-19.
The third set was again interesting in the opening half when both men played at the same speed and remained close.
Nevertheless, it was Takeshita who took over the control from his Malaysian rival and managed to wrap up the set with a huge margin of 21-14.
Takeshita emerged as victorious against Fang Yang in rubber games with a thrilling 16-21, 21-19 and 21-14 score on the board.
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