MALAYSIA's Roslin Hashim produced a titanic fightback but it was not enough to take him into the second round of the men's singles badminton competition at the Goudi Olympic Hall in Athens last night. In a marathon 75-minute match against Indonesian Sony Dwi Kuncoro, Roslin lost 6-15, 15-9, 15-8. Sony, the winner of the Asian Championships last year and the runner-up this year, had looked to be on course for a routine victory when he whipped Roslin in the first game and took the early lead in the second. But Roslin bounced back into the game. Picking up everything the Indonesian could throw at him. Roslin clawed back from 0-3 down to lead 8-3 lead and then took seven straight points to hold game point at 14-3. Sony rallied at that point, fighting back to 9-14 before Roslin took the match to a rubber game. In the decider, Sony was again in his element, racing to an 8-3 lead at the change before Roslin again mounted a fightback. But this time, he failed to reel Sony in after closing the gap at 8-11 and the hard-hitting Indonesian went on to seal victory. A disappointed Roslin, the first Malaysian singles player to go out of the competition, walked away from the courts without talking to the waiting reporters. In action on Sunday in the other half of the men's singles draw, Singaporean Ronald Susilo shattered Chinese top seed Lin Dan's dream of winning Olympic gold. World number one Lin Dan, regarded as the game's most exciting talent for years and a real showman on court, was outfoxed by the unseeded Japan Open champion whose epic 15-12, 15-10 win booked a place in the last 16. Lin Dan, known affectionately as Super Dan, tried to muster a comeback in the second game against livewire Ronald, pulling back from 10-5 down to move within two points of his tenacious opponent. But with the 20-year-old All-England champion breathing down his neck, Ronald pulled clear with a thrilling display of athleticism and intelligence that delighted a privileged audience. Ronald, 25, said his game-plan worked to perfection, always trying to keep the shuttlecock low to limit Lin Dan's dangerous airborne attacks. “I guess I played very efficiently today and was in no rush to kill,†said a modest Ronald. “He played a bit differently and committed a lot of unforced errors and I got a lot of points from there, but I guess it was my patience that paid off in the end.†Asked if he fancied his chances of taking the gold having ousted the favourite, he replied: “It's only the first round, so I won't get carried away. I'm taking it step by step, but obviously this result will build my confidence.†In women's singles, China are assured of a medal as the top three seeds all clinched places in the semi-finals yesterday. Top seed and world number one Gong Ruina produced a ruthless display of speed and power to beat Taiwan's Cheng Shao-chieh 11-3, 11-3, while temmates Zhang Ning and Zhou Mi also advanced with wins over Wang Chen and Petya Nedelcheva respectively. World champion and second seed Zhang Ning will face Zhou Mi in a semi-final clash, while Ruina will meet Dutch fourth seed Mia Audina. Both matches will take place tomorrow. TheStar
