Singapore battle hard to down Thailand 3-2
NG Tze Yong steered reigning champion Malaysia for their first win as the host trounced minnows Brunei 5-0 in the Group B tie of the Selangor Badminton Asia Team Championships 2024 (SELBATC2024) at Setia City Convention Centre in Shah Alam today.
Eogene Ewe, playing in his first big match as third singles, sealed Malaysia’s opening day victory after Leong Jun Hao had given a 2-0 lead to the homesters.
“I was a bit nervous as this is my first big match for Malaysia..but I’m happy with my performance and successfully delivered the winning point. My confidence grew stronger with the help of my coach,” said Eogene.
Tze Yong had earlier earned the opening point with an easy 21-7, 21-11 win over Kan Kah Kit while Jun Hao defeated Marhanif Ali 21-5, 21-6 in just 19 minutes.
Chong Hong Jian/Muhammad Haikal completed the rout with a 21-5, 21-12 win against Marhsanif Ali/Haziq Roze while Goh Sze Fei/Nur Izzuddin had no trouble trouncing Matthew Minggat/Mohamad Iqbal Aysraf 21-9, 21-7.
It was a tight encounter in Group C which turned out to be the highlight of the day, which saw Singapore battling hard before earning a slim 3-2 win over Thailand.
With both teams tied at 2-2, Joel Koh Jia Wei played well in the last men’s singles tie to clinch the winning point for the Lions with a tight 22-20, 21-16 win over Tanawat Yimjit over 49 minutes.
Three-time winner Indonesia, and Japan, seeking their first title here, crushed their opponents with 5-0 wins over Saudi Arabia and Myanmar.
Meanwhile, Denmark Open winner Weng Hong Yang needed 49 minutes to overcome India Open finalist, Lee Cheuk Yiu 21-15, 21-17 while world No. 35 Lei Lan Xi shocked Malaysia Open quarterfinalist Angus Ng Ka Long in a tight 69-minute match before winning 13-21, 21-16, 21-15 to help China earn a 5-0 win over Hong Kong China.
Chinese Taipei trounced Kazakhstan 5-0 in Group B while Korea crushed Kazakhstan with similar results in the Group D encounter.
The six-day BATC 2024 showcases top-notch action by Asia’s best, one of the world’s biggest tournaments under the purview of Badminton Asia to showcase Asia’s best teams and stars in a highly competitive tournament.
Apart from providing valuable qualification points in the race to the 2024 Olympics in Paris in July, BATC 2024 also offers the top four teams with automatic berths to badminton’s most prestigious tournament, the Thomas and Uber Cup finals scheduled in Chengdu in May.
RESULTS
Men:
China bt Hong Kong 5-0
Malaysia bt Brunei 5-0
Indonesia bt Saudi Arabia 5-0
Singapore bt Thailand 3-2
Japan bt Myanmar 5-0
Chinese Taipei bt Kazakhstan 5-0
Korea bt UAE 5-0
Match Schedule (14 Feb)
Men:
Japan vs Singapore
Malaysia vs Kazakhstan
India vs Hong Kong
Chinese-Taipei vs Brunei
Thailand vs Myanmar
Indonesia vs UAE
Korea vs Saudi Arabia
Women:
China vs India
Chinese-Taipei vs Singapore
Malaysia vs UAE
Korea vs Saudi Arabia
