Taufik Struggling On Day One
The first calendar event of 2011 is underway in Chinese Taipei, the best eight players in the Super Series of 2010 are in action for a chance to be named Super Series Finals Champion. It will also provide excellent competition before the first Premier Series event in Korea in just under 3 weeks time.
Group A in the Mens Singles provided an all-Danish encounter, as Peter Gade took on Jan O Jorgensen in what promised to be a fantastic start to 2011. It didn’t fail to deliver as both players shared the opening two games before Gade came out on top in the third game to take the opening match in the group in just over an hour. The other Group A match was much more one-sided as Lee Chong Wei defeated Tien Minh Nguyen of Vietnam in two games to book his at the top of Group A after the opening matches.
Group B has a younger array of players, except for Taufik Hidayat who took one of the seeded players in his group, Boonsak Ponsana in the opening match. After splitting the opening two games, Hidayat tamely lost the deciding game to make qualification to the knockout stage increasingly difficult. The other match in the group was an all-Chinese match between Chen Long and Du Pengyu which also went to three games, with the seeded Long taking the match in the third.
In the Women’s Singles, top seeded Wang Yihan beat Petya Nedelcheva to book her place atop Group B but the other seed in the group, Tine Baun suffered a surprise defeat to Yip Pui Yin in two games to jeopardise her future in the event. Group A is topped by Wang Shixian after her two game win over Yao Jie and the other seed in the group, Bae Youn Joo defeated Salakjit Ponsana in three games to ensure her qualification to the last 4 is in her own hands.
The top seeds met in the opening match in the Mens Doubles in Group A, with Koo and Tan losing out to top seeded Ko and Yoo of Korea in two games. Cai and Fu won the other match in the group, defeating Chai and Zhang in in a tight three game match. The top two seeds in Group B both won their opening round matches, with Boe and Mogensen defeating Kido and Setiawan in two games whilst Lee and Jung defeated Lee and Fang, also in two games.
The Womens Doubles was always going to be a lottery with just four seeds and every partnership capable of being anyone on any given day, Group A seen the top seeded Cheng and Chien win in front of a home crowd against Polii and Jauhari in two games whilst the 3/4 seeded Nedelcheva and Russkikh lost to Japanese pairing of Maeda and Suetsuna in two games. Group B was a similar story, with both unseeded pairs defeating their seeded opponents to throw the group wide open. Wang and Yu defeated their Chinese team mates Cheng and Zhao in three games whilst Fujii and Kakiiwa defeated the Thai pair of Voravichitchaikul and Aroonkesorn in two games.
Voravichitchaikul bounced back from her defeat in the womens doubles to team up with Anugritayawan to defeat the 3/4 seeded Zhang and Zhao in their opening Group A match. The top seeds in the group Laybourn and Rytter Juhl came through a tight three game match against the English pairing of Wallwork and Robertson. Group B saw both seeded pair crash to defeats, with the 3/4 seeded Mateusiak and Zieba losing to Ko and Ha in two games, whilst the highest seed in the group Thoungthongkam and Prapakamol lost to the Indonesia pair of Marissa and Gunawan.
Boe and Mogensen In Finals Again
As surprising as it was to see Joachim Persson through to the semi-finals with numerous victories along the way, the biggest surprise thus far came today when he defeated Peter Gade for the first time ever to book his place in the finals. Persson has struggled with injuries over the last couple years, and questions have been raised as to his ability to keep up with the best on the tour, however those questions have been put to rest with a 21-14, 16-21, 21-17 victory over the top seeded Gade. Persson now plays Taufik Hidayat who had a more straight forward victory over Boonsak Ponsana 21-13, 21-14.
The womens semi finals featured two China vs Thailand match ups, and the results were in China’s favour. Top seed Wang Yihan came through in three games over Porntip Buranaprasertsuk 21-12, 19-21, 21-10. Her compatriot Li Xuerui will be Wang’s opponent after her two game victory over Salakajit Ponsana 22-20, 21-13, ending the Ponsana family’s hopes of a title in Paris.
Germany will be happy with two pairs in the finals, one in the mens doubles, and the other in the mixed doubles. First up was the surprising upset of second seeds Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan to Ingo Kindervatter and Johannes Schöttler 13-21, 21-17, 22-20. The German pair will now play Denmark’s Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen who are appearing in their second consecutive super series final after defeating their compatriots Jonas Rasmussen and Mads Conrad-Petersen 21-23, 21-6, 21-16.
The next success for Germany came from Birgit Overzier and Michael Fuchs who won after Thomas Laybourn and Kamilla Rytter Juhl retired at 17-10 in the first game. The German pair now play Thailand’s Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthongkam after they also benefited from a withdrawal against their compatriots Songphon Anugritayawon and Kunchala Voravichitchaikul.
Petya Nedelcheva and Anastasia Russkikh needed the longest match of the day to win their semi-final match against Denmark’s Christinna Pedersen and Kamilla Rytter-Juhl 18-21, 21-15, 21-16 in an hour and eleven minutes. They now face Thailand’s Duanganong Aroonkesorn and Kunchala Voravichitchaikul who had a fairly straight forward victory over Lena Frier Kristiansen and Maria Ropke winning 21-9, 21-15.
Full French Super Series 2010 Results
Persson Shows New Spark
Perhaps the most interesting story of this French Super Series is the performance of Denmark’s Joachim Persson.
Persson has been pushed to the shadows in the last year or so as Jan Jorgensen and Viktor Axelsen have shown some substantial potential, however this week in Paris Persson seems to be reminding us that he still has the ability to threaten at these events. The left hander defeated China’s Du Pengyu in three exquisite games 21-17, 12-21, 21-19 to book his quarter-final place against his compatriot Peter Gade who struggled more than expected against German Marc Zwiebler. Gade won in three games as well 15-21, 21-12, 21-8. On the other side of the draw neither Boonsak Ponsana or Taufik Hidayat struggled against their opponents, Ajay Jayaram or Rajiv Ouseph respectively, as both won in straight games.
The big upset on the womens singles side came at the expense of Tine Baun when the second seeded Dane fell to China’s Li Xuerui 21-16, 21-17. Li will now play Salakajit Ponsana who defeated China’s Liu Xin. England’s Elizabeth Cann failed to continue her surprising run when she lost to Thailand’s Porntip Buranaprasertsuk 21-15, 21-18 who will now play Wang Yihan. Wang crushed her Russian opponent Ella Diehl 21-8, 21-8.
The mens doubles is looking like we will see a repeat of last week’s final. Boe and Mogensen made it one step closer to the final by defeating Flandy Limpele and Simon Mollyhus 21-16, 21-18. In the semi-finals they will face another Danish pair after Jonas Rasmussen and his new partner Mads Conrad-Petersen defeated England’s Chris Adcock and Andrew Ellis 23-25, 22-20, 21-14. The most surprising semi-finalists are Germans Ingo Kindervatter and Johannes Schöttler who defeated their Malaysian opponents Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari Mohd and Ong Soon Hock in two close games 22-20, 21-18. They will face Indonesia’s Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan who narrowly defeated Malaysia’s Gan Teik Chai and Tan Bin Shen 14-21, 21-18, 21-17.
A couple of walkovers marred the womens doubles quarter-finals as Duanganong Aroonkesorn and Kunchala Voravichitchaikul from Thailand and Lena Frier Kristiansen and Maria Ropke from Denmark booked their places against one another without a shuttle being hit. On the other side of the draw we have yet another Danish pair through to the semi-finals after Kamilla Rytter Juhl and Christinna Pedersen defeated Heather Olver and Mariana Agathangelou 21-19, 21-11. The Danish pair will now play Petya Nedelcheva and Anastasia Russkikh.
Finally in the mixed doubles there were no easy matches for our semi-finalists. All the matches were closely contested, perhaps the most intense was Thomas Laybourn and Kamilla Rytter Juhl’s victory over Hendra Setiawan and Anastasia Russkikh. The Danes need three games and extra points to win 23-21, 15-21, 27-25 and next they’ll play surprise semi-finalists Michael Fuchs and Birgit Overzier who knocked out top seeds Hendra Gunawan and Vita Marissa 16-21, 21-9, 21-16. The other half of the draw features an all Thailand showdown between Voravichitchaikul and Anugritayawon and their opponents Thoungthongkam and Prapakamol.
Full French Super Series 2010 Results
Jorgensen Falls Short In Paris
Yesterday saw just one seed crash out, today was the complete opposite with seeds toppling on an hourly basis through the day. France’s interest in their home Super Series is overly before the weekend begins, whilst Peter Gade goes from strength to strength after his back injury.
Gade, the top seed in the singles has safely progressed into the quarter finals tomorrow after a two game win over Christian Lind Thomsen and will play the 6th seeded Marc Zwiebler on the TV court on Friday evening. The other Dane in the draw is Joachim Persson, the 8th seeded also came through his all-Danish encounter in a tight two game match and will play China’s Du Pengyu. The unseeded Chinese player has already beaten two Danes on route to the last 8, defeating Viktor Axelsen in Round 1 and last week’s winner Jan O Jorgensen in the second round also. Ajay Jayaram has also reached the last 8, defeating the 7th seeded Dicky Palyama in three games to book his place against Boonsak Ponsana, the 3rd seed.
The seed total in the women’s singles was halved on day 2, with Pi Hongyan crashing out to Elizabeth Cann in a tame two game defeat. Liu Xin continues her excellent run of results with another impressive victory, this time over Juliane Schenk, the 5th seed. Salakjit Ponsana is another player in a rich vein of form, defeating the 4th seeded Yao Jie in a two game victory. Tine Baun has been impressed also, with a two game victory over Jeanine Cicognini.
Four seeds remain in the men’s doubles, with the top seeds Boe and Mogensen taken to three games by Goh and Teo of Malaysia. The 5th seeds Conrad-Pedersen and Rasmussen as well as the 2nd seeded Kido and Setiawan were also taken to three games as many of the seeds still remaining in the draw have been taken the distance. Only the 6th seeded Gan and Tan of Malaysia have progressed safely, with back to back two game victories.
The women’s doubles lost 5 of it’s 8 seeds today, with only the top 3 seeds remaining in the draw. The 6th seeded French pair of Choinet and Rasadi lost out to Lee and Obanana of the USA in three games to end the local interest in the women’s doubles. The top seeds Nedelcheva and Russkikh are safely into the last 8 with a two game win over Fontaine and Palermo of France.
Only one seed crashed out of the mixed doubles, 5th seeded Fischer Nielsen and Pedersen lost out in three games to the pairing of Setiawan and Russkikh, who are both seeded in their respective level doubles events. They take on another Danish pair tomorrow as they take on last weeks winners, Laybourn and Rytter Juhl, the 3rd seeds.
Taufik Through After Tough Semi Final
In spite of a strong presence in the semi finals Japan only succeeded in pulling through with two pairs into the finals, however both pairs are in the womens doubles so the title is assured for Japan. Miyuki Maeda and Satoko Suetsuna easily defeated their Russian opponents Valeria Sorokina and Nina Vislova 21-11, 21-9 while their compatriots Shizuka Matsuo and Mami Naito benefited from a withdrawal during the third game against yet another Japanese pair, second seeds Mizuki Fujii and Reika Kakiiwa.
The mixed doubles features our only all European final with England’s Nathan Robertson and Jenny Wallwork through after a win against Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthongkam in three games 21-16, 18-21, 21-16. The English pair now plays Denmark’s top pair Thomas Laybourn and Kamilla Rytter Juhl who knocked out Indonesia’s Hendra Gunawan and Vita Marissa in two straight 21-19, 21-11.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_jvEzYAO_4[/youtube]
Both the mens doubles and singles feature Denmark vs Indonesia line ups. First off in the mens doubles Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen will play Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan. Both pairs had relatively straight forward wins, and both had Japanese opponents with the Danish pairing winning 21-11, 21-16 over Yoshiteru Hirobe and Kenta Kazuno, and the Indonesian pair defeated Hiroyuki Endo and Kenichi Hayakawa. Boe and Mogensen defeated Kido and Setiawan in last year’s edition of the Denmark Open, and the hometown crowd is no doubt hoping for a repeat.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ns2p1aTJH8M[/youtube]
The other Denmark vs Indonesia line up features young rising star Jan Jorgensen against the tricky veteran Taufik Hidayat. Jorgensen easily disposed of Hu Yun 21-12, 21-17 while Hidayat struggled against China’s Du Pengyu and was pushed to three games 21-15, 17-21, 21-17. This is an important match for the Dane who has yet to win a Super Series title, and a win here would certainly give some added confidence after a tough last few months.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nB7tOF8KBW4[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XM1cLQ-f4qI[/youtube]
Finally the womens singles final will feature an all Chinese line up with top seeded Wang Yihan facing off against unseeded qualifier Liu Xin. Liu ended another surprise semi-finalist’s run when she defeated Salakajit Ponsana 21-19, 21-18 while Wang had a decidedly easier time against her Bulgarian opponent Petya Nedelcheva winning 21-8, 21-10.
For more complete results and draws:
Denmark Open Super Series 2010 Draws and Results
Wang Yihan Through To Semi-Finals
While still not heavily favoured the Japanese contingent has proven formidable this week in Odense with five pairings left heading into the semi-finals stage. However, in spite of their strong numbers remaining in the doubles, their premier player, Kenichi Tago, fell to the second seed Taufik Hidayat in two close games 21-19, 21-19. Hidayat will now face the unseeded Du Pengyu of China who easily disposed of India’s Kashyap Parupalli.
With the withdrawal of Peter Gade from competition the top half of the draw is up for grabs and Jan Jorgensen has continued to show his ability to perform on home soil with a win over last year’s finalist Marc Zwiebler in two games 21-16, 21-19. Jorgensen will now play Hu Yun who defeated Poland’s Przemyslaw Wacha.
In the womens doubles Japan looks almost assured the title with 3 of the 4 remaining pairs. The only barrier to Japanese success remaining are Russians Valeria Sorokina and Nina Vislova who will be looking to upset top seeds Miyuki Maeda and Satoko Suetsuna. The Russian pair had to go through Thailand’s Kunchala Voravichitchaikul and Duanganong Aroonkesorn while the Japanese disappointed the hometown crowd by defeating Lena Frier Kristiansen and Marie Ropke. The other half of the draw features Japanese shuttlers exclusively.
The top seeded men’s doubles pairing of Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen succeeded in continuing their campaign with a victory over Mak Hee Chun and Tan Wee Kiong of Malaysia in two straight 21-16, 21-12. The Danish pair now face Japan’s Yoshiteru Hirobe and Kenta Kazuno.
The womens singles features a couple of Cinderella stories with Salakajit Ponsana’s previous win over Tine Baun, and now another win over Ai Goto to put her into the semi-finals against Liu Xin. Liu has been another surprise as she has upset Eriko Hirose and Ella Diehl en-route to her semi-final placement.
England has not a particularly strong showing in Odense this week, however Nathan Robertson and Jenny Wallwork succeeded against the Polish opponents Nadiezda Zieba and Robert Mateusiak in three close games 21-14 17-21 22-20. The English pair will now face Saralee Thoungthongkam and Sudket Prapakamol.
For more complete results and draws:
Denmark Open Super Series 2010 Draws and Results
Tine Baun Fails To Defend Title
Peter Gade’s withdrawal put added pressure onto Tine Baun for success in the singles disciplines this week in Odense. She went into her second round against Salakjit Ponsana as a massive favourite but her opponent pulled out a surprise two game victory to end Denmark’s hopes in the women’s singles.
There is however, interest in the last 8 of the men’s singles. Viktor Axelsen’s first foray into the Super Series ended at the second round at the hands of the 4th seeded Jan O Jorgensen in two games and Joachim Persson also lost in Round 2, losing to the 2nd seeded Taufik Hidayat in two games. Hidayat takes on Kenichi Tago in the quarter finals whilst Jan O Jorgensen takes on the 6th seeded Marc Zwiebler in the last 8.
Even without a full compliment of players, China still has 3 entries in the last 8 of the women’s singles. Wang Yihan progressed safely in two games whilst Li Xuerui defeated the 6th seeded Juliane Schenk in two tight games to book her last 8 place against Wang Yihan. Qualifier Liu Xin defeated another Chinese qualifier, Zhu Lin in three games to book her place in the quarter final against 8th seeded Ella Diehl. Salakjit Ponsana takes on Ai Goto in the last 8, who also defeated a seed to reach this point, beating Yip Pui Yin of Hong Kong in two games.
Denmark’s interest in the men’s doubles is done to just 1, the top seeded Boe and Mogensen survived a day of Danish disappoint in the doubles with the most notable defeat being the loss of the 6th seeded Conrad-Petersen and Rasmussen to German qualifiers, Fuchs and Roth in two games. Larsen and Skovgaard lost out to Mak and Tan of Malaysia, who now take on the top seeded Mogensen and Boe in the last 8. The 2nd seeded pair of Kido and Setiawan are also safely into the last 8 with a two game win over English qualifiers Adcock and Ellis.
One Danish pair remain the women’s doubles, as Ropke and Kristiansen defeated the 8th seeded German pair of Overzier and Marinello in three games to set up a last 8 match against the top seeded Maeda and Suetsuna of Japan. The 2nd seeded Fujii and Kakiiwa won their all-Japanese matchup to book their place in the last 8 and 3rd seeded Nedelcheva and Russkikh progressed safely into the quarter finals after surviving their first round scare.
All 8 of the seeded pairings in the mixed doubles have progressed to the quarter finals, with only the 2nd seeded Gunawan and Marissa and 5th seeded Fischer and Pedersen being taken to three games in their second round matches. Top seeded Mateusiak and Zieba take on the 6th seeded Robertson and Wallwork tomorrow whilst the 2nd seeded Indonesians Marissa and Gunawan take on the 7th seeded Fuchs and Overzier in tomorrow’s quarter finals.
Boonsak and Sister Lose
It was a poor day for Salakjit and Boonsak Ponsana as their campaigns both ended early on Day 3, for the 5th seeded Salakjit Ponsana her loss to Yu Hirayama of Japan in three games added her name to the casualty list of the women’s singles seeds already out, with 8th seeded Susan Egelstaff crashing out on Day 1. Two more seeds were also put out in the second round with Sayaka Sato and Sung Ji Hyun, the 6th and 7th seeds also losing to unseeded players.
The top three seeds in the men’s singles have all progressed safely into the last 8, with top seed Tien Minh Nguyen defeating Yunus Alamsyah in three tight games to book his place in the quarter finals. Sony Kuncoro also came through a three game encounter against Japan’s Sho Sasaki to claim his place in the last 8 whilst 3rd seed Simon Santoso had little trouble in his third round match, winning in two games to progress into the quarter finals. The 4th seeded Boonsak Ponsana lost to Malaysian Kwong Beng Chan, with Ponsana losing in three games, 22-20, 7-21, 21-16.
6 of the 8 seeds in the men’s doubles are into the last 8, with only the 8th seeded Ko and Yoo losing out to the unseeded pair of Hadiyanto and Wijaya who will play the top seeded duo of Koo and Tan from Malaysia, who have failed to drop a game on route to the last 8. There were wins for the 3rd seeds Lee and Jung and 7th seeds Chen and Lin who meet in the second quarter final. The second all-seeded quarter final is between the 5th seeded Choong and Lee of Malaysia and the 4th seeds, Fang and Lee of Chinese Taipei.
The injury scare over Lee Hyo Jung’s retirement last week has not stopped her playing this week, as the 2nd seeded Lee and Lee progressed into the last 8 with a tight three game victory to book their place in the quarter finals against Ahmad and Natsir of Indonesia, the 5th seeds. The top seeded Gunawan and Marissa are into into the last 8, coming through against Fang and Wang of Chinese Taipei. Lee Hyo Jung is also through to the last 8 of the women’s doubles, after defeating the 3rd seeds Amitapai and Munkit of Thailand. The top two seeds in the event are also through, with top seeds Chin and Wong progressing after Chou and Ku had to retired at 8-2 in the first game. The on-form pair in the women’s doubles, Cheng and Chien are also through to the lasy 8 with a two game victory over Ha and Jang.
Lee Through To Quarters
Friday is Quarter Final day in Malaysia and the main attraction is safely into the last 8. Lee Chong Wei progressed through his three matches to date without the loss of a single game on route to the Quarter Final where he will play Andre Kurniawan Tedjono of Indonesia, seeded 8. The Indonesian has also failed to drop a game on route to the last 8 but this is his biggest test to date, after a easy 21-9, 21-9 victory over Chong Chieh Lok of Malaysia in the Round of 16.
The local fans will also be treated to an all-Malaysia clash in the last 8, with Muhammad Hafiz Hashim (seeded 6) playing against Wong Choong Hann (seeded 4) in the 3rd of tomorrow’s quarterfinal matches. The final quarterfinal pits 5th seeded Yun Hu of Hong Kong against Lee Chong Wei’s main rival this week, the second seeded Taufik Hidayat, who was well tested in the round of 16 by the 13th seeded Tan Chun Seang of Malaysia.
There is interest in the women’s draw too, with 4th seeded Mew Choo Wong through to the last 8 after two comfortable victories. The 4th seed will play against the 8th seeded Tzs Ka Chan of Hong Kong whose progression has been more of a struggle than the Malaysian. There is more interest with Tee Jing Yi, the unseeded player has came through a duo of three game victories to reach the last 8 of the competition, however she faces her toughest test in the quarter final in the 3rd seeded Yip Pui Yin of Hong Kong. Top seed Pi Hongyan has struggled through a couple of three game victories and will need to find some form in her match against Salakjit Ponsana, seeded 5 in the quarter final.
Malaysia are also guaranteed at least one semi-finalist as the top seeded Koo and Tan take on countrymen Mak and Tan in the first of the quarter finals. There is another opportunity in the 2nd quarterfinal as 6th seeded Gan and Tan play against Indonesians Gunawan and Yulianto for a place in the last 4. The bottom half of the draw however is devoid of Malaysian interest, with 2nd seeded Kido and Widanto looking to be the favourites to reach the final from their half of the draw.
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