Written By: Malcolm Rhys Lim Edited By: Valerie Chua & Jolene Wong Photographs By: Eusoffworks
While our Badminton guys were playing against KE7, our girls team were busy fighting their own battles against KR. Although we had topped the group stage after beating arch rivals Temasek, we were up against arguably the better team from the other group due to KR suffering a shock defeat at the hands of RH. Goes to show that sometimes winning everything may not be the best.
Lineup:
1st Singles: Shi Min
1st Doubles: Elizabeth and Yu Ling
2nd Singles: Jia En
2nd Doubles: Joanna and Wei Lynn
3rd Singles: Elis
In the first match of the day for the girls, Shi Min was up against the best player from KR. Although on paper her opponent was supposed to be better, nobody would have been able to tell this from the way they were playing. Shi Min was going toe to toe with her opponent as each point was a hard-fought rally. There were a few points in particular where Shi Min really outplayed her opponent, hitting a drop shot followed by a hard lob and then another well-disguised lob, leaving her opponent utterly confused. However, her opponent started to pull away after the interval despite Shi Min’s valiant efforts and she won the first set 21-12.
Shi Min improved even more in the second set, taking a 11-10 lead through some really well placed and sometimes well disguised drop shots. Shi Min’s most potent weapon during the match had been her drop shots and her opponent realised this and tried to prevent her from using it by going for the kill as soon as she could. Her hard smashes after Shi Min’s lobs ultimately won her the match. Good effort from Shi Min nonetheless, and I’m sure her spirit really impressed many of the supporters and players alike.
Badminton sensation Shi Min going for a smash!
Final score: 12-21, 13-21
Eusoff 1 – 0 KR
The first doubles match for the girls featured ever-smiling Eli and her partner Yu Ling. Right from the start, they proved to be too strong for their opponents. The combination of Eli’s drop shots which barely got over the net followed by Yu Ling’s monstrous smashes was just unstoppable and they raced out to an 11-4 lead at the interval. From that point on, Eli seemed to let her foot off the pedal as she started to focus on having fun. This caused some concern from the bench and captain Joanna had to step in and remind Eli to take it down a notch. Even while being nagged at, Eli could only laugh. Even after the scolding, Eli still tried a trick shot as she (intentionally) smashed the shuttle into the top of the net and it bounced over her opponent’s head. While Yu Ling was busy apologising to the opponents for the lucky point, Eli was busy celebrating her trick shot. Despite all the fun and games, Eli and Yu Ling won the first set 21-10
The next set was more fun and games for Eli and Yu Ling. Eli entered a Zen mode in the second set as she only had one job which was to hit a drop shot and let Yu Ling take the smash which their opponents just could not receive. Although they did this multiple times, their opponents just could not find an answer to it. The pairing of Eli and Yu Ling was definitely quite a funny sight to see as Yu Ling seemed so focused and serious on court as opposed to Eli who was always laughing. But hey, whatever works right?
Final score 21-10, 21-9
In the second singles match, Jia En was up against another strong KR player. According to Captain Joanna, it was going to be an interesting match as both of them were power players, preferring to use their BICEPS to win them the game. Jia En started off strong, taking a 7-4 lead and with what Joanna said proving to be true as both players were really putting a 100% into their killer smashes. However, the opening few points gave Jia En’s opponent a lot to think about as her smashing power was clearly second class as compared to Jia En’s. Jia En maintained her lead throughout the match even as her opponent switched tactics and went for more drop shots to mix things up. Her opponent’s drop shots made the set more interesting but, in the end, Jia En still overpowered her to win the set 21-16.
Jia En started off the second set rather shakily, quickly going down 7 – 3 to her opponent who was mixing up her drop shot with her smashes more effectively than in the first set. In a game of power players, the deciding factor was actually who could mix their drop shots in more effectively to set up for an easy smash. It took Jia En a while to adapt to this newfound playstyle and it seemed as if it was going to cost her the second set as she was down 20-15. In the blink of an eye however, she was right back in it at 20 all. With momentum on her side, her opponent kept hitting the shuttle out and Jia En eventually won the set 23-21.
Jia En serving the shuttlecock.
Final score: 21-16, 23-21
Eusoff 2 – 1 KR
Captain Joanna was up next for Eusoff as she partnered up with Wei Lynn with the pair looking to win the match for Eusoff. The combination of Joanna and Wei Lynn proved too formidable for their opponents. Not just were their smashes and drop shots better than their opponents, but their game sense and knowledge elevated their game to a whole new level. They turned what could have been long rallies into simple points by hitting into the spaces between their opponents. This can only be described by one word. Vision. Their KR opponents stood no chance, with both Joanna and Wei Lynn on their A-game today. A few well-placed shots later, Joanna and Wei Lynn took the first set easily 21-12.
The second set was just a continuation of the first as Joanna and Wei Lynn continuously hit to the areas where KR was having trouble receiving the shuttle. Their teamwork was also impeccable as they did not have any communication errors the entire game. With everything on their side, they were truly unstoppable as they finished their entire match faster than Captain Shaun finished a single set on the guy’s side.
Final score: 21-12, 21-13
Eusoff 3 – KR 1
Last up for Eusoff was Elis who in all reality was just going out to have some fun. With KR’s stronger singles players already having played, Elis was up against a relatively inexperienced player. The first 2 points were an indication of how the entire match would shape up as Elis hardly even moved her feet. Her opponent kept hitting the shuttle right back at her while Elis was making her run around the entire court. Certainly a good workout for her opponent. In what was a tremendous display of sportsmanship, Elis never went for the kill although she could have multiple times, choosing instead to return the shuttle to her opponent and play out a rally. Even with a little bit of chance being given, Elis still took the first set easily 21-6.
In the second set, the KR bench came alive, cheering frantically whenever their teammate scored a point against Elis. Elis however kept up her good nature and merely smiled when she lost the point, even thought she could have easily won it 1 or 2 hits ago. Seeing as how her opponent was having fun, Elis decided to try some trickery as she kept deceiving her opponent as to which side she would hit the shuttle. It was quite an amusing game overall with both sides not under any pressure whatsoever. Elis’ talent proved too much for her opponent in the end and she took the second set with a score of 21-5.
Final score: 21-6, 21-5
Eusoff 4 – KR 1
With that, our girls are through to the finals against our arch-rivals Temasek in what will be a rematch of their opening preliminary game. Will we win again as we did previously? Come on down to MPSH5 to cheer both our badminton boys and girls on! LETS GO EUSOFF!
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