Vietnam Open Grand Prix: Daren Liew fights hard to beat Misbun Ramdan Mohmed Misbun in round-of-16
Malaysia’s national player, Daren Liew had to dig deep into his reserves to get rid of his talented team-mate, Misbun Ramdan Mohmed Misbun in the Men’s Singles round-of-16 battle at the 2011 Vietnam Open Grand Prix, in Vietnam, on Thursday, August 25.
Daren, who is currently ranked at Number 57 in the Men’s Singles world standings, played better badminton against the younger opponent who put up a strong resistance throughout the match. However, the 11th seed Daren managed to win the match in
straight games by working hard for 41 minutes.
The start of the opening set was entertaining as both players were moving in the court with the same speed. Misbun Ramdan, the son of the former national coach, Misbun Sidek, matched the speed and level of his senor team-mate in the first-half of the game.
Until the interval, Daren was just ahead of his younger rival by reaching at 11-9.
In the second-half of the first game, Daren accelerated his speed and played deceptive strokes by utilising his extensive experience against the inexperienced challenger. Misbun Ramdan made some unforced mistakes by sending the bird into the net or outside
of the court. Daren bagged the first game in 19 minutes with the score of 21-16.
Misbun Ramdan put up a terrific show of top class badminton in the second set of the match. His phenomenal performance in the opening half of the set created pressure on his senior opponent. However, Daren composed himself by playing safe strokes from all
areas and found his flow to play a better game.
The score reached at the concluding part when Misbun Ramdan played a negative shot which helped Daren to win the game by a margin of 22-20. This entertaining straight-set battle ended in the favour of Daren with the score of 21-16 and 22-20.
In the Men’s Singles quarter-final battle, Daren is set to meet the top seed and World Number Seven, Nguyen Tien Minh of Vietnam, who toppled Keigo Sonoda of Japan in straight games in the round-of-16 match.
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