Viktor Axelsen beats Eric Pang in Men’s Singles qualifying round of All England Open – Badminton news
Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen lived up to expectations as he secured his berth in Men’s Singles main round after beating Eric Pang of Netherlands in qualifying round of All England Open Premier Super Series 2012 in England, on Tuesday, March 6.
The young Axelsen, who has been positioned at number 30 in Men’s Singles world rankings, had to work really hard to get rid of his lower ranked opponent Eric who is currently World Number 40.
The Danish consumed 52 minutes in the court and managed to overpower his rival in a thrilling three-set contest.
On the other hand, Eric put up superb show of top quality badminton but failed to dominate rallies in the concluding game and lost the match with a decent score on the board.
In the first game, both shuttlers played with precision and pushed each other in all areas of the court. They remained toe-to-toe until the score reached at 9-9.
At this stage, Axelsen played better badminton and managed to take a small lead of 11-9 until the 60-second interval.
After the break, Axelsen remained on track and remained successful in extending his lead. However, Eric also played positive game and levelled the score at 19-19.
The Danish showed a wonderful aggression at this crucial stage and bagged two consecutive points to win the set with a 21-19 score on the board.
In the second game, it was Eric who showed his elevated skills and remained ahead of Axelsen in the opening half.
On the other hand, Axelsen could not live up to expectations and remained far behind his lower ranked challenger at 8-11 until the break.
After the interval, Eric remained on track by playing to his maximum speed as his higher ranked rival was not playing positive badminton.
Axelsen failed to produce attacking shots in the second set and lost it with a one-sided margin of 13-21.
In the decider, Axelsen showed his craft as he took an early lead by playing fast game and got a strong position until the interval by reaching at 11-8.
After the break, he remained on track and did not let Eric to level the score at any stage of the game. He won the final set with a convincing 21-17 score on the board.
The overall score of this Men’s Singles contest was 21-19, 13-21 and 21-17.
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