tournamentsoftware link : http://www.tournamentsoftware.com/s...3CB08F-376F-4268-BEDD-905EECF07145&d=20140116 MAS time : http://www.worldtimezone.com/time/wt...ma=Find%20Time PAW Game : http://www.badmintoncentral.com/for...A-Winner-(PAW)-197-–-MALAYSIA-PREMIER-SS-2014 Round of 16 will kick off on 03.00pm and using 4 courts. Two big upsets happened last night when KOR SS WS runner-up and MD winner Ratchanok and Boe/Mogensen respectively succumbed to their opponent. There're several matches who involve same nation : Wang YH v Han L, Mitani v Yamaguchi, Wang SX v Sun Y, Du PY v Chen YK. All four defending champions are expected to advance into last eight, Lee CW, Tai TY, Ahsan/Setiawan and Fischer/Pedersen. For INA viewers, STAR Sports will air LIVE from R/16 onwards, 5 matches for today's programme (starting 05.00pm ~ 16.00 WIB, court 1).
BUKIT JALIL: Akane Yamaguchi is only 16, but she is already being hailed as the next big star of women’s badminton. She rose to prominence last year by becoming the youngest-ever Super Series winner when she triumphed in the Japan Open, before turning on the style to bag the world junior title. And on Wednesday, the teenager showed exactly why she’s worth the hype with an incredible performance to stun reigning world champion Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand in the first round of the Maybank Malaysian Open. Yamaguchi showed maturity beyond her tender years and excellent court coverage to rack up a 21-18, 23-25, 21-16 win in 63 minutes at the Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil. “I’m really just glad to have won. I wasn’t thinking about going for an upset before the match,” said Yamaguchi with a big grin. “I’m not very good with my offensive game, so my main focus was on my defence ... and I think I did that well. “In the first game, I had a good win and that gave me the confidence but Ratchanok caught up in the second game and somehow I gave up there. “Still, I’m glad I managed to pull through for the win.” But Yamaguchi, who only turns 17 in June and is still studying in high school, believes that one win over a world champion doesn’t mean she is ready to step up just yet. Rather, the Fukui native prefers to take it slowly and bide her time before thinking about the future. “I’m definitely not ready to be a world champion yet ... even though I have just beaten one,” said Yamaguchi. “There’s still a long way for me to go and I have to take it one game at time. I want to compete in more Super Series tournaments and consistently take on the higher-ranked and stronger players. “For me, there is no immediate target yet ... I just need to keep on improving and to try my best. My next tournament is a national high school competition!” The future certainly looks bright for Japan, especially with the target being the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. With Yamaguchi and 17-year-old Asian junior champion Aya Ohori in their ranks, the Japanese women are set to rock the world.
its good to see akane is down to earth. unlike some of her supporter,especially the mr never wrong~~~
BUKIT JALIL: When all others fell on the wayside, the ever-dependable world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei stayed rock steady to reach the men’s singles second round at the Maybank Malaysian Open at Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil. On Wednesday, top seed Chong Wei hardly raised a sweat when he disposed of Hans-Kristian Vittinghus of Denmark 21-7, 21-13 in just 35 minutes. He will take on former world junior champion Wang Zhengming of China in the second round on Thursday. Chong Wei is once again the sole survivor in the men’s singles after both Liew Daren and Chong Wei Feng were sent spinning out of the tournament. Daren, who has just recoverd from a hamstring injury, was toothless against seventh seed Du Pengyu of China in his 14-21, 13-21 defeat. Wei Feng, who is nursing a slight back problem, also failed to lift the gloom in the men’s singles when he was out of sorts in his 13-21, 19-21 defeat to Sho Sasaki of Japan. The number of Malaysians in the home tournament has dwindled but Chong Wei promises to go the distance to keep the Malaysian flag flying. “I won my match today but it was not one of my best performances. I will have to step up tomorrow,” said Chong Wei. “Many of the Malaysians have been eliminated today but I will fight on.” On his second round face-off with Zhengming, he said: “This is my first Chinese hurdle and I know what to expect from him. I will be prepared.” Both Daren and Wei Feng were disappointed that they could not join Chong Wei. Said Daren: “The fear of aggravating my injury was there and I could not stay focused. I made many errors.” Said Wei Feng: “There was a combination of many factors that led to my defeat today. I did not play my game and I also added undue pressure on myself when I saw many other Malaysians crashing out.”
Ratchanok, Tai TY, Marin, Sindhu, Yamaguchi, they surely will produce WS competition more competitive and expected to challenge China WS players who dominate the international scene for long time, Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 should be the peak time for them
Chong Wei Feng is so weak minded by saying "undue pressure on myself when I saw many other Malaysians crashing out." How is that supposed to affect your performance on court? bahhhh !
Totally agree. I read the interview from LXR that it's more competitive in WS than in MS where there are only two players (CL and LCW) playing a level above everyone else and it's difficult for others to emulate. Having said that, I still expect China WS to dominate the WC2014 and OG2016