Written By: Malcolm Rhys Lim Edited By: Valerie Chua & Jolene Wong Photographs By: Eusoffworks
Coming in on a high after yesterday’s 5-0 demolition of KE, our badminton boys were feeling good about their chances of winning gold for Eusoff against arch-rivals Temasek Hall. TH came into the match worried about the strength of our singles and as such, decided to take a gamble and pair 2 of their stronger singles together in the hope of winning the lineup game. Things did not look good for us as the TH lineup was almost perfect for them but Captain Shaun told his troops not to worry as he firmly believed that we would prevail anyways.
Lineup:
1st Singles: Shaun
1st Doubles: Alex and Jun Xian
2nd Singles: Eik Chieh
2nd Doubles: Charles and Wei Zhi
3rd Singles: Wei Zhong
The first singles match was a walk in the park for Captain Shaun. With TH pairing their singles into one doubles, this meant splitting up their usual doubles pairing. Placed in an uncomfortable situation and up against such mighty opposition in Captain Shaun, the TH opponent looked way out of his depth right from the start. Shaun was in cruise control from the get go as he chose placement over power in this match to beat his opponent. 3 drop shots followed by a perfectly placed shot down the line left his opponent rooted to the ground. Taking a 14-3 lead, the only question about this match was how long it would take for Captain Shaun to finish off his opponent. Captain Shan didn’t waste any time, winning the first set by a score of 21-9.
With the victory in sight, Captain Shaun decided to have a bit of fun during the second set, attempting some trick shots of his own. A cheeky behind the back shot barely failed to make it over the net. With the score at 14-4, I think Captain Shaun is entitled to a little bit of showboating isn’t he. Even with Shaun’s extravagant shots in the second set, his opponent proved no match for him as Shaun continued to capitalise on his high drop shots which may have been okay in a doubles match but not here.
Captain Shaun showing off some tricks.
Final score: 21-9, 21-9
Eusoff 1 – 0 TH
According to Shaun, based on the lineup, Eusoff needed to win at least one of the doubles matches and a lot was riding on Alex and Jun Xian as they took on the fairly new TH doubles pairing. They started off the match shakily, presumably because they had never faced this pairing or even seem they play together before. Down 2-5, they started to make a comeback as they figured out their opponents’ playstyles. Good defence from Alex and Jun Xian got them back into the match as they saved a few smashes and they managed to take the lead 7-6. Their opponents however managed to figure a game plan after the interval and continued to compound on Alex and Jun Xian’s drop shots. They always seemed to be ready for it and this resulted in a few easy smashes for them as they took the first set 21-15.
The next set saw Alex and Jun Xian using less of their drop shots as they knew the TH pair were ready to pounce on it. Instead, they played patiently, lobbing the shuttle to the back of the court and waiting for an opening to strike. This paid off as they took a narrow one-point lead at 15-14. However, they could not hold on as momentum shifted towards TH’s side after a few hard smashes which Alex and Jun Xian could not return. The TH pair won the final point after Alex threw himself onto the ground, desperately trying to return the shuttle but to no avail.
Alex (left) delivering a backhand shot, with his teammate Jun Xian (right) looking on.
Final score: 15-21, 16-21
Eusoff 1 – 1 TH
The second singles match saw Eik Chieh up against TH’s top singles player. Eik Chieh may not have been as strong physically as his opponent but his game plan revolved around outsmarting his opponent with clever shot placement. It seemed to be working as he managed to keep the score line close, with only a single point separating the two at one stage of the match. However, Eik Chieh could not keep up the pace as his opponent eventually took the first set 21-14.
Eik Chieh’s elbow injury from the day before seemed to be affecting his game in the second set as he could not find his momentum. It also did not help that his opponent seemed to have laser eyesight, always being able to tell when the shuttle was flying out, even if it was by the tiniest of margins. With his elbow acting up once more, Eik Chieh took a short time out to apply some cold spray. However, it did not seem to help much and unfortunately, he dropped the second set 21-5. Things may have been very different had he been at his 100%. Good effort from Eik Chieh!
Freshie Eik Chieh garnering all his strength to send the shuttlecock back!
Final score: 14-21, 5-21
Eusoff 1 – 2 TH
On the brink of elimination, up stepped MONSTER BICEPS CHARLES and his doubles partner Wei Zhi. They seemed a bit nervous at the start of the match and the TH pair, no.8 in particular capitalised on this with some really hard smashes which neither Charles nor Wei Zhi could return. Charles and Wei Zhi improved as the set wore on and answered with some trademark BICEP SMASHES of their own. Down 14 – 18, Charles and Wei Zhi could not find a way to string some points together as one good point won was always answered by another from the TH pair and they lost the first set 21-17.
Sensing that their team needed some support, the three monkeys (Alex, Jun Xian and Nian Ze) together with team sparrows (Wesley, Billy and Jerald) answered the call and started cheering their lungs out. Each point won by Wei Zhi and Charles was met by enthusiastic and slightly annoying “YEAHHHHHHS” coupled with out of tune cheering. Buoyed by the support, Charles and Wei Zhi kept the pressure up on their opponents, playing some good defence and transitioning into offence seamlessly. Up 11-8 at the interval, they kept their composure and held on to win the second set 21-17.
The third set had everybody on the edge of their seats, with Charles and Wei Zhi executing their game plan brilliantly. Seeing as TH no.41 was the weaker of their opponents, they tried to target him with their smashes and drop shots and it worked as they were up 11-7 at the interval! After the interval however, TH started to get very lucky with 3 points in a row hitting the net and bouncing over to our side. Charles and Wei Zhi kept pulling the score apart only for the TH pair to catch up. 15-12 became 15-15 and then it was 17-15 until finally TH tied it at 19 all. Charles and Wei Zhi showed no fear however, as Wei Zhi calmly hit a drop shot which TH could not return. Set point to us and Charles and Wei Zhi were immediately on offence after a poor service return from TH. 3 smashes in a row from Wei Zhi right down the middle of the court with the final one being deflected wide won the set for us. The crowd went wild at that point, with Jun Xian running onto the court and falling down with a “heart attack”. Nian Ze, a CPR master had to pump his heart back to life in order for the three monkeys to continue on.
Killer duo Charles (left) and Wei Zhi (right) displaying great chemistry on court!
Final score: 17-21, 21-17, 21-19
Eusoff 2 – 2 TH
At this point, the final match between Wei Zhong and his opponent was just a formality. Much like Shaun’s match earlier, Wei Zhong’s opponent was a doubles player and the difference really showed. Perhaps being a doubles player, he was used to the court being slightly larger and as a result, he kept hitting the shuttle wide of the singles line. Wei Zhong’s shots were way too hard for his opponent to handle and he took the first set easily with a score of 21-8.
The next set played out exactly the same as the first, with Wei Zhong’s shots forcing his opponent to hit the shuttle into the net or out. By the end of the match, Wei Zhong looked like he had hardly broken a sweat.
Veteran Wei Zhong casually smashing the shuttlecock back to his opponent!
Final score: 21-8, 21-7
Eusoff 3 – 2 TH
This final was too close for comfort for our boys, after having beaten every other hall convincingly. However, the sweetest victories are the most hard-fought ones and I’m sure our badminton boys won’t forget this match for a long time to come. That’s all folks, till the next IHG!
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