It was an eventful opening day at the Yonex All England 2013 badminton tournament. Several top-ranked players faced unexpected defeats, while others narrowly escaped similar fates. The National Indoor Arena in Birmingham was witness to some major upsets, as defending Women’s Singles champion Li Xuerui and 2009 champion Wang Yihan were knocked out in straight games. Li, who had an exceptional year in 2012 with eight major titles including the Olympics, was defeated by Korea’s Bae Yeon Ju. Wang, on the other hand, couldn’t overcome Indonesia’s Lindaweni Fanetri.
The surprises continued for China as Men’s Singles third seed Du Pengyu lost a close battle to Chou Tien Chen from Chinese Taipei, and Men’s Doubles fifth seeds Hong Wei and Shen Ye were defeated by Poland’s Lukasz Moren and Wojciech Szkudlarczyk, who managed to save three match points. Even the Men’s Doubles Olympic champions Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng had to concede a walkover to Indonesia’s Ricky Karanda Suwardi and Muhammad Ulinnuha.
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Denmark also had a rough day, with casualties in Men’s Singles (Viktor Axelsen and Hans Kristian Vittinghus), Mixed Doubles (Joachim Fischer Nielsen and Christinna Pedersen), and Women’s Doubles (Christinna Pedersen and Kamilla Rytter Juhl). Korea’s Men’s Doubles pair and third seeds, Lee Yong Dae and Ko Sung Hyun, were also eliminated by Germany’s Ingo Kindervater and Johannes Schoettler.
The Malaysian star Lee Chong Wei faced a tough challenge in his Men’s Singles match against Wong Wing Ki of Hong Kong. He lost the first game and even faced match point in the third game but managed to make a comeback and secure his spot in the second round.
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With the top Chinese women players out of the competition, the focus has now shifted to India’s Saina Nehwal, the second seed and a strong contender for the title. However, her first-round match against young Thai player Sapsiree Taerattanachai was far from easy, with Nehwal emerging victorious after a hard-fought battle. She will now face Indonesia’s Belaetrix Manuputi in the second round instead of Japan’s Minatsu Mitani.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Indonesian legend Taufik Hidayat’s last All England campaign ended in disappointment as he was defeated by Japan’s Sho Sasaki in Men’s Singles.
- Sourabh Verma, who made it to the main draw after tough qualifying rounds, saved two match points against Dionysius Hayom Rumbaka in a thrilling Men’s Singles match.
- Tine Baun from Denmark, playing in her final tournament, sailed through to the second round of Women’s Singles with a comfortable victory over Sashina Vignes Waran from France.
Text by Dev Sukumar | Badmintonphoto
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