Malaysia defeated All-Star Europe 3-1
to end their Axiata Cup preliminary round campaign on a satisfactory note
at the DBL Arena in Surabaya yesterday.
The Indonesian domination, however,
derailed when they drew 2-2 with All-Star Asia while Thailand
defeated Vietnam 4-0, and Singapore outclassed Philippines 3-1 respectively.
The Thais lead the table chart with 13 points going into the next round
followed by Indonesia (12), Malaysia (11), Vietnam, All-Star Europe and
All-Star Asia (8), Singapore (7) while the Philippines have just one point to
show.
Spain’s Carolina Marin took to courts
in the first women singles against Tan Jing Yi. The Malaysian lass showed
determination and skills but failed to overpower her opponent, losing 12-21 in
the first game. Jing Yi, however, made a comeback by winning the second 21-17 but
was too tired in the third and went down 13-21, giving All-Star Europe the much
needed boost by taking a 1-0 lead.
In the men’s singles, Irishman Scott
Evans’ showdown with Liew Daren went the extra mile – with Evans coming on
strongly by taking a 6-0 lead in the first game before Daren closed the gap at
8-13 and then drew level at 15-15.
The serve exchanged hands frequently
and both were tied once again at 20-20 before Daren wrapped up the match 22-20.
In the second set, Evans raced to take a 13-8 lead but allowed Daren to level
at 15-15 before the Malaysian romped home to win 21-19.
With the
overall score now tied at 1-1, it was once again left to the mixed-doubles pair
of Chan Peng Soon- Goh Liu Ying and men’s doubles of Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon
Heong to do damage control. And they did just that. First, Peng Soon-Liu Ying
subdued Nathan Robertson-Jenny Wallwork 19-21, 21-16 and 21-15 to give the
Malaysians a 2-1 lead.
In the men’s doubles, Kien Keat-Boon
Heong, ranked World No 5, pulverised Russian pair Ivan Sozonov-Vladimir Ivanov
21-11, 21-17 to seal victory.
And now the Malaysians look to up the
ante during the second round which will be held simultaneously in Surabaya and
Kuala Lumpur from March 29-31.
Vietnam, All-Star Asia and Singapore
are drawn to meet Malaysia at the Cheras Badminton Stadium for the second round
while for the Surabaya second-leg, hosts Indonesia are paired with All-Star
Europe, Philippines and Thailand at the DBL Arena..
The
top four teams with the highest number of points after the preliminary round
will progress to the semi-finals where there will be a re-draw to determine the
match-ups. Both the semi-finals and finals will be held in Kuala Lumpur over
two days beginning April 13. The winning finalist will take home a whopping
US$400,000.
Women’s Singles
Tee
Jing Yi lost to Carolina Marin 12-21, 21-17, 13-21
Men’s Singles
Chong
Wei Feng bt Scott Evans 22-20, 21-19
Mixed Doubles
Chan
Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying bt Nathan Robertson-Jenny Wallwork 19-21, 21-16, 21-15
Men’s Doubles
Koo
Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong bt Ivan Sozonov-Vladimir Ivanov 21-14, 21-17
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