Bronze for Shuttlers

Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images for SSC
By Cheong Wei Ming in Jakarta

Like their female counterparts who lost to Thailand 0-3 in the semi finals earlier today (Nov 13), Singapore’s male shuttlers also bowed out of the SEA Games team event in Jakarta at the same stage, falling to Malaysia 0-3. This means bronzes for both our teams.

Lack Of Consistency

Derek Wong, playing in the first singles, tried to give his team a good start. He showed glimpses of the form that led him to beat Indonesia’s Taufik Hidayat earlier this year. But lack of consistency let him down and he lost to Daren Liew (17-21, 18-21).

No Answer

In the doubles, Liu Yi and Terry Yeo could find no answer against Lim Khim Wah and Goh Wei Shem as they succumbed tamely (13-21, 13-21). It was Ashton Chen, playing in the next singles, who raised our hopes a little as he gave a good account of himself in his match against Mohamad Arif. But after a valiant fight, he fell 14-21, 21-12, 15-21.

Good Fight

Reflecting on his match, Derek said, “I felt I played quite well. However, my opponent was more consistent at the net. Trying to play tight net shots led me to make a few mistakes.” Ashton, who went into his tie with Singapore trailing 0-2, said, “Today’s matchup was 50/50, I would say. We put up a good fight, and it was a pity that we lost.”