There were so many good matches , it was hard to tear away for a quick dinner:just a Polar curry puff and cafe latte.No teh tarik here but the coffee is worth paying for;so rich and aromatic I can be converted on coffee. But as usual, the organisers never forget to treat badminton fans like children.No food is allowed in the seating area to prevent littering but spilling coffee is acceptable.Yet they don't have enough seats or tables for a crowd. And they have specials like buy 2, get 1 free. And I asked, 'How am I to eat 3 in one go, if I don't binge and i cannot bring the balance for my friends?' How come the food vendors don't realise that the silly food restriction actually hurt their sales? Some players deserve mention but only for matches after 3.30pm(I missed the earlier ones.) 1.Sho Sasaki and TCS were both outstanding in making LCW and PG work for their wins.Both lost badly in G1 but won G2 through sheer, relentless retrievals which surprised and frustrated their better opponents. Sho has always been dangerous to higher ranked players and can upset if he can take G1(ask PSH of his 3 match losses).There was no doubt of a LCW win but it's clear he wasn't prepared for Sho. TCS displayed a most wonderful competitive attitude.Despite 3 tough matches the day before and facing a formidable opponent,he played with confidence and the belief that he could defeat PG.This was a high quality match and PG could not believe TCS was matching him shot for shot. In G3,TCS played an over-the-net shot well. Unfortunately,the umpire gave the point to PG because the racket crossed the net. It was the right call; TCS asked the umpire for confirmation.Then TCS decided to skip a little before receiving PG's serve and went on to win the next few points! Whether winning or losing, his spirits remain constant and high. TCS has such a happy demeanor about him he's a delight to watch. For what he showed today, TCS has my vote as player of the tournament. He deserves every SS opportunity. 2.It's great to see KBH on the comeback trail.The first big difference is KBH now has obvious leg muscles like LCW.This suggests that he has been working on his fitness and stamina and it is paying off in his fluid movement and easy ,big, deceptive smash.KBH has a height advantage and was in commanding form in his win over RH.It is a pity he meets BP next.BP is in top form and should have a slight advantage but don't count KBH out. An upset is possible.
Kuan Beng Hong might be on the comeback trail but the furious pace has now dwindled to a weary walk at best. On Tuesday, KBH played three matches - against Ng Zong Ren, Derek Wong and Tang Kirt Soon (altogether one hour on court for the six games)! Despite that, he managed to stave off the experienced Roslin Hashim on Wednesday... and that was no easy encounter! On Thursday, after a gruelling 48 hours, KBH faces off against an in-form Boonsak Ponsana, who has played just one match so far. (To boot, that was a rather tame affair against a defensive, rusty, error-prone Ronald Susilo.) If the BP-KBH match goes into three sets, it's not too difficult to guess who will have the upper hand
I have to agree with pjswift in complaints against the organisers. Let me relate another story. I cycled to the stadium to watch the matches yesterday as I lived close to the venue. I parked and locked my not-so-cheap mountain bike against the railing at the side of the staidum at the upper level, along the walkway towards the entrance. It was away from the entrance and not visible but at a location where there are enogh pedestrians to dissuade theft. When I came out after the games, I had a note from the SIS (I guess it means Stadium Internal Security) pastered on my seat saying something like "This is a FINAL WARNING. Your bike will be clamped". I left wondering: 1) when was the 1st warning 2) who the hell they think they are- isn't the stadium a government property owned by all citizens 3) what does this do towards the "green" goals of the country At the end, I just have to conclude that this is the famed S'pore-mentality.
You have reason to be angry and irritated. Um, no dispute with that. On the flip side, you should be lukcy that it was the stadium staff that found your bike... and not a bicycle thief PS: SIS is Singapore Indoor Stadium.
For some reason, Hong Kong's Yip Pui Yin was not in her elements at all. Singapore's Gu Juan seemed to have a rather easy time winning 21-11, 21-12 The massive support from the home crowd also helped her raise her game. Surprisingly, Malaysia's Lydia Cheah put up a stronger fight against Gu Juan. In the first qualification round, Lydia did better, losing 13-21, 15-21 (better than Yip Pui Yin's score) Poompat Sapkulchananart is in great form. (Remember his awesome first match against Bao Chunlai in the recent Thomas Cup?) After a tight contest with Malaysia's Mohammed Arif earlier, Poompat blew away Hong Kong's Ng Wei in his first match of the main draw. The final score (21-14, 21-17) suggests a hard game... but one could see that Poompat was simply torturing Ng Wei
Probably the never give-up spirit of this MAS promising talent could become dependable compatriot for LCW since WCH is getting old and others still don't show significant improvement.
Sorry to hear about it and u did NOTHING wrong at all. In fact, u r being a good citizen to go "green". What's wrong with parking his bicycle as long as it doesnt cause any inconviniences to the pedestrians? Yes, our govt should support to go "green"... but talk is cheap
pjswift was right... and I was wrong What I should have taken into heavy consideration was KBH's determination to win His victory over Boonsak Ponsana was an amazing display of resilience!
Errrrr, was just wondering, was the note a formal looking one, really from the stadium security?? Could it have been a prank by some teenager, put a note on your bike? If in Msia, that's one of the things that can happen, but 1st of course is your bike being carried off.
Since You Asked... eagle, it's 2am in Singapore :crying: Briefly put, Boonsak Ponsana's steep smashes and arcing drops proved to be his own undoing. By the start of the second game, Boonsak should have understood that Kuan Beng Hong is a master at retrieving steep smashes (KBH lost the first game largely because of a string of unforced errors near the end). The previous day, Roslin Hashim died relying on the steep-smash attack against KBH. Perhaps flat smashes would probably have worked better (and we will know if that's true when KBH meets Andrew Smith next). As it was, Boonsak lost a great deal of his stamina smashing and then leaping or lunging for the certain return. Secondly, almost every one of Boonsak's net shots were arcing drops - there were very few tumbling drops. Except for the occasional crosscourt slice from his backhand corner, Boonsak played almost no tight drops from the back of the court - they were more arcing drops, each one falling almost on the service line. Not once did KBH have to scramble to get to these drops - that also meant that his footwork remained in rhythm. Most importantly, KBH showed amazing fortitude and cunning. After losing the first game, he dug a base just in front of the back tramlines and, from there, fired smash after smash down Boonsak's backhand side. When he wasn't smashing, he was swiftly slicing a crosscourt drop to Boonsak's forehand net corner. Against a tall player, that's a lethal combination if used consistently (Sairul Amar Ayob used this quite a bit and successfully against Anup Sridhar). It would take a Lee Chong Wei or a Tien Minh Nguyen to have retrieved the accurate down-the-line missiles that KBH fired today. Alas, Boonsak is no diver - and, today, it showed too. Finally, one factor that seems to have worked remarkably well for KBH is 'Misbun at his side'. It's certain that Misbun's 'live' tips made quite a difference although all credit for the gruelling work must go to KBH (more so since he has had a very arduous run to get to this stage of the competition). It's not often that a mere qualifier comes this far and posts a 16-21 22-20 21-17 score against the reigning champion. In all, this KBH game against BP will remain a great victory
oldhand, thanks for your time for the preview... now u can go to sleep..i know that u are very tired... actually u can post more previews 2moro morning... i hope so hehe...and more pics...lolx
Yip Pui Yin over trained herself. Her movement is not as smooth on court compare to before. She lost alot of weight.
SG Indoor Stadium is indeed a world class indoor stadium... fully equipped with A/C and comfortable chairs. But... I still prefer the atmosphere and crowds at Istora Senayan
haiyooo, I didnt say must immediately write mah, I already went to zzzzz aft posted that. Was thinking you would put your journalistic skills to use the next day.
I remember a similar experience.. ..(i might've shared this before) 3 yrs ago, in 2005, the first time i attended the S'pore Open, i also had the same experience. I remember i had to put my extra doggy bag, which consisted of light snacks and a bottle of water, which i had brought from my hotel in hope i could enjoy them while watching the matches, on a separate table outside the playing hall. Not sure if the organizer still allows that or not, but we could only eat and drink whatever we brought from outside the SIS, in that area. *Btw, thanks for sharing the review..
Singapore Indoor Stadium is well-equip but the atmosphere is not alive as the number of supporters turning up from 1st day to the QF stage is about 1/4 full as many Singaporeans do not turn up to watch the matches. Maybe of the withdrawal of top players.
