Line-ups for 1st day match Zhang Ning vs Mia Audina Taufik Hidayat vs Anders Boesen Chan Chong Ming/Koo Kien Keat vs Nathan Robertson/Robert Blair
I just got back from the 1st day of the MVP Cup. My friends and I sat in the 500peso ticket section near the entrance. I have to say that the best seats are the 300 peso seats. Even the 50 peso bleacher seats are ok since ULTRA is quite small. The only advantage of our seats was when Mia Audina passed right in front of us, so my friends were able to get her autograph. Our friend was also able to catch Nathan Roberston's broken racquet when he gave it to the audience The matches were amazing!!!! AND the atmosphere was wonderful. Everyone was cheering for both teams. Nathan Robertson was really playing to the crowd and hamming it up (which I think is one reason why they lost the 3rd game). You could hear quite a lot of females cheeering for him. The players from both Europe and Asia are being treated like Rock Stars (or movie stars) given the number of fans asking for their autographs and pictures. I wonder if that's how they're treated in other countries.
Results for today Asia 3 Euro 0 Even the professionals feels the vibes and pressure playing in front of the Philipino crowd 1st Match Zhang Ning vs Mia Audina The initial phase was slow. Both of them have difficulty in adapting to the court. There was a draft as well. Zhang Ning was controlling the whole game. Both were deceptive with their drops and baseline shots. I can see that Mia was working hard to retrieve ZN's shots. Overall the game was good. But it was not their best performance. 2nd Match Taufik Hidayat Vs Ander Boesen Taufik was the local favourite as he has been in this country several times. Many were cheering him on. 1st set was a close match. Anders Boesen was leading all the way , there were many good rallys but due to Taufik's experience and his defence he eventually won the 1st set. Second set was all Taufik as he up his game. Anders was running all over the court. He played hard but unfortunately Taufik is still too good for him 3rd Match KooKK/ChanCM vs NathanR/RobertB The mens doubles was definately the highlight. Nathan Robertson was working the crowd. He even threw his racket to the spectators after he clashed his rackets with his partner during the game. Not only that.. he got a yellow card from the umpire as well. 1st set both were playing cautiously. Less lifts more drives and netplay. Both team were struggling with the draft and the court. What i can say during the 1st set , was just a warmup set for them. Malaysia team led the first set. Second set was a good one , everybody was cheering for the underdogs and in fact the english team won the 2nd set due to many unforced errors of the Msian Team. After some advice from Punch Gunalan , the msian was set to go. 3rd set was close with many long rallys and setup plays. good and netshots that is milimeters away. It was a close and entertaining 3rd set to watch. However The Msian pair won the 3rd set anyway. Definately today was an unforgettable day for the Philipinos to witness a glimpse of the world class play. Everybody was cheering and shouting. Personally i think the crowd are much better than other Major Opens. Stay tune for Day 2.
Game 1 won by Zhang Ning Game 2 won by Taufik Game 3 won by Chan Chong Ming/Koo Kien Keat Go Team Asia! Pleased to meet you Ants!
Just wondering why is it call MVP cup?what does MVP stand for and is there actually a Gold Cup or something for the winners?
It stands for Manuel V Pangilinan CUP. He is the owner of a telco company here. Badminton fanatic. Rich man.
I forgot to post the scoreline for the matches. Here is it. Zhang Ning vs Mia 11-5, 11-3 Taufik Hidayat vs Anders Boesen 15-13, 15-4 Chan Chong Ming/Koo Kien Keat vs Nathan Robertson/Robert Blair 15-8, 6-15, 15-11
Ants!!! Im in cebu, cant be there to watch the game personally, is there any replay in any local cable networks? I really would like to know.
I'm not sure about the upper seats. I think they are not selling the uppers. Since it is a first time for a big event like this. The organisers don't know what to expect. Basically all the seats and tickets offered are sold out.
