Only for the evening session for the Scotland vs Netherlands and Vietnam vs Ukraine top of Levels 2 and 3 matchups .... today is Friday, so we go to Mosque at noon.
Right. Would have been nice to get your keen observation on the CAN v SWE tie. No bouncy skirts for you then
Quarterfinal action pics cometh ...... So let us start with the hugely anticipated clash, between Korea and Germany (haa, I'll bet you were expecting China vs Indonesia, huh?) First on the scene is the return of the, ahem, reassembled Mrs Michels, having been split in an earlier tie to create a sexy diversion that affected Chan Peng Soon's service and attack game ..... She and her regular partner, Mr Fuschs, were confident of turning the tables against the hunk Ko Sung Hyun and his partner who just got out of BWF and Korean BA jail, the white as lace Miss Kim Ha Na ...... Unfortunately, this time Birgit Michels' splitting performance had been well studied by the Korean bench, not a single split was recorded in the match and Korea take it home in 3 games. Her husband would be glad to see Mrs Michels back in one piece, nice attire too. Fuchs' serve just skimming over Michels' sexy pose ..... Mrs Michels' attack couldn't split the Korean defence .... ..... although they did get to win one game ..... KSH : Watch Birgit closely, I heard she had splitting powers ..... KHN : Don't stare at her, you'll whack the return to the net .... German pair about to whack home a winner ...... ...... but the Koreans are prepared with their defensive dance ..... ..... and Mr Ko was able to take charge. State of tie: KOR 1 GER 0
Looking at the pic again, it looked like him (from the back). However, what was Jacob doing in KL? I thought he's no longer holding any impt position in PBSI? So, how did get a free trip there??? Just wondering....
Meanwhile, two courts adrift ..... anticipation was brewing that the defending champions, China, will blow apart Indonesia 3-0. Not just mere pipe dream too - since CHN had the power of 3 of the 5 Olympic Champs + one World Champion WD pair who also just got out of BWF jail for the same, err, offence perpetrated by Kim Ha Na. Both teams sat side by side, China in yellow while Indonesia took over the Li Ning red colours. Drums were rolling from both sides to create a battle atmosphere, worthy of a top competition. Battle flags were unfurled ...... awaiting the first charge of battle. And both sides of supporters and contingent flouted the rules of no flash photography ..... Pics below ...... Two Li Ning squads sit side by side ...... ready for battle ..... Chinese squad unfurl their huge battle flag ..... .... and as a show of power, they brought in two drummers to send "cannon fire" to opponents' ears ...... ..... but really, do you think such novices could beat this 25 year war veteran? I know, we Malaysians had battled him since 1988 at Stadium Negara. ... he too has his generals holding the flag ..... ...... and most importantly, girls squads, ready to scream in hysteria for every point won ......
The Chinese advance was led by Xu Chen and Ma Jin, former All-England Champions and Olympic Silver Medallists. Opposing them were their successors to the All-England title, twice winners Lilyana Natsir and Tontowi Ahmad. Tontowi, by the way, was not shaven, possibly indicating that he woke up late that morning ...... In the head to heads, well, odds were definitely not in Indonesia's favour ..... but matches are not played on head to heads. Pictures below ..... The battle began with Lily dominating frontcourt ..... .... while this man offers a silent prayer ...... INA pair kept on the midcourt pressure .... ..... allowing them to celebrate winning game no 1 ..... But of course, the tide could always turn, and it did ..... Xu Chen : What do you want me to do, boss? Ma Jin : Whack 'em hard!! ... and thus, Xu Chen obliges. Playing with faster shuttle pace ...... ..... allowed Ma Jin to wrest control ...... .... keeping Lily occupied at the back while making easy net tap kills. This went on until the midgame interval of game 3. The Indonesians were sliding and slipping so often, Lily had to do the double duty .... ....... of overseeing the mopping crew cleanup. At the midgame interval .... ..... Coach Richard Mainaky told them to hang tough and slow/vary the shuttle pace ..... It worked wonders. From 5-11, to 7-12, to 14-13, until the Indonesians never looked back ..... ..... as they celebrated a very famous victory that restored Indonesian pride. ..... and so, this loyal supporter got a big prize, Towi's sweat drenched racquet. State of tie : CHN 0 INA 1
He is Ketua Dewan Pengawas ( Chairman of Supervisory Board ) based on the info given in, http://badmintonindonesia.org/app/organization/structure.aspx? If he is not eligible for a free trip, then he is most likely spending on his own for supporting INA team. I myself wanna go to KL and watch our beloved players playing there, however my annual leave has been used off, too bad.
Some search in duckduckgo.com resulted in Yacob Rusdianto as the Deputy Team Manager of INA 2013 SC squad, thus he's entitled to be there. Btw he's the father of Christopher Rusdianto (born in 1990), a member of the INA national training camp in MD.
Learn the art of throwing racket in frustration without breaking the racket. [video=youtube;av4pwRR3t-Q]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=av4pwRR3t-Q[/video]
Hmm .... so much argument on the identity of the man who shook the hand of LYB? A lot of them shook his hand, our estwhile PBSI liaison officer was the first, by the way. Rexy and the rest of the coaching staff too .... Meanwhile, as the final point was secured to seal Indonesia's lead, Korea's Lee Dong Keun was making heavy weather of his match against Dieter Domke. Domke, in fact, could and should have won it, courtesy of his opponent's inexperience. But in the end, Domke was infected with victory disease, last seen affecting his XD team mates when they went down to TPE yougsters ..... yup, that's when you try to finish it off too fast. Pics down here: Typical Korean, started off with power play ...... ...... though he's good at desperate defending too ..... ..... but most of all, he kept Domke away from the net .... Having lost the first game, Domke strived for greater heights .... ...... but couldn't ignore his defences ..... Domke used greater initiative in the last phases of the game ..... but mistakes happened ...... So Korea took a 2-0 lead .... with their MD powerhouses up next. Compared to Domke's challenge, Tommy Sugiarto's opposition, Chen Long, has a long list of experience, from winning Olympic silverware to losing in the World Championships first round ...... thus, Tommy's odds are very long ...... Nonetheless, Tommy carried on with great dignity, although he knew the outcome was inevitable. Such a "Long" guy, effortless stretch defence ..... ..... with diagonal attacks so good ...... ..... and never troubled at the backhand either ...... Coach Joko Suprianto : Emm, maybe you should stay within the red carpet, the uniform would camouflage you from his-Longness ...... So Tommy tried more initiative ....... ...... but he's still being forced to send weak backhands .... ...... which resulted in forced errors. Chen Long won the match for China comfortably, and so it was 1-1 in the CHN-INA tie.
Having lost their 2 crucial matches, the Germans now knew no amount of Teutonic efficiency, build quality or technical wizadry could get them out of this one ..... Their only hope .... lodging more complaints ...... Pictures here: Korean pair, too good in defence .... .... even better in drives ...... ..... but definitely best at attacking the shuttle. Korean Coach : Take note, your opponents are known for whining ..... just let the umpire handle it. The German pair were incensed, that even at full power, they could not ..... ....... place the shuttle on the floor, because ...... ...... most of the time, they end up on the floor ..... They couldn't even win tight net battles ....... so in the end .... German pair : Hey ref. No one in the world should have been able to play like that without steroids ..... Umpire : You meant, no one in Germany, right? Those boys were just being kind, it could have been worse.
Hot off the Press ...... Group 3 Winners Before we continue on with our quarterfinals review ...... ..... let us first salute our Group 3 Champions, Vietnam. A brilliant tactical approach by sacrificing women's singles and using their two top players in women's doubles bore fruit. Vietnam defeated Ukraine 3-1. Pictures of the winners here: Li Ning Sudirman Cup Group 3 Champions - VIETNAM
abedeng or any other BCer, why don't go a bit further giving a brief intro about the VIE squad... i can hardly find any info about VIE players and there's no such thread about VIE Prof Players... he he he i just know Nguyen Tien Minh so both Vu Thi Trang and Nguyen Thi Sen are VIE's two top WS?? btw who's the tallest lady in the above pic? seems to be a nice looking one, from a mixed blood origin? it will be quite helpful if you may list the names & their positions on above pic. thanks for the cool pics!