Written by: Jarrel Koh
Edited by: Jared Rajiv
Photos by: EusoffWorks
Eusoff Tennis (M) proceeded to the semi-finals, putting them up against Raffles Hall. The lineup was quite similar to their previous game against Kent Ridge, with Timothy for 1st Singles, Ben Wong for 2nd Singles, Dylan Seah for 3rd Singles, but a slight change in the doubles lineup with Han and Yew Kit for 1st Doubles, and Joshua Lim with Ito for 2nd Doubles.
Timothy was absolutely dominant in his match against RH, starting off with a strong first game and a comeback for the second game. He took sudden death for the third game, and from then on he was adequately warmed up and ready to unleash his inner demons against RH. The way he ran around the court at lightning speed to return balls may cause some to mistake him as Eusoff’s top tracker, and as he hit monster serves and made fundamentally better plays, he eventually closed both sets 6-0 to take the match, finishing it with a wonderful run to smash the ball across. The RH player really took it in his stride though and said that Tim was giving him free tennis lessons. Great sportsmanship on both sides!
Ben continued to deliver as well, beasting through his games against RH, playing it safe for his standards. Ben played with peak confidence against his opponent, having full trust in his ability and didn’t lose track of the game even when the umpire forgot to record one of his scores (he got back his point through talking to him). Ben took the first set 6-1, and gunned for a flawless second set, closing the set 6-0. At one point Ben said he felt bad… don’t feel bad for sticking to the basics and winning, Ben. You still fulfilled the supporters’ wishes of securing a fast win.
Ben getting ready to unleash a powerful forehand shot
Dylan’s match could very well have been a Netflix documentary, lasting approximately 2 hours total. The match was the definition of a neck to neck matchup and was the closest it could possibly be score wise. Both players were athletic and fit with insane stamina, and their rallies actually went on for 2 minutes back and forth at a time. Dylan had massive comebacks in individual games, and closed out the first set narrowly with a tiebreaker score of 10-8. THIS WAS THE FIRST SET. RH took the second set 3-6, and the match was decided with a Super Tie Breaker, first to 10 points, but from a score of 9-9 onwards the match is won with a 2 point gap. The fight was intense, and after 3 world wars, 5 missed wins and 2 blunders, RH eventually took the tiebreaker 9-11. We hope Dylan is physically well and resting as I write this because he was absolutely drenched and struggled to walk by the end of it. Mad respect.
Han and Yew Kit lost their first game against RH, and started their second game with a double fault by Han. Quite sure this was just a front though because they quickly turned the tides, and Han started popping off. Yew Kit, usually the man behind the camera, has become the star in front of the cameras. Yew Coffee came in clutch for EH but unfortunately not for their sleeping opponents. Han started serving so well that supporters couldn’t even keep track of the ball.
Joshua and Ito, having great chemistry both in and out the court as part-time lovers, played to their strengths, and their match featured aces by Joshua and insane smashes by Ito. They fought their nerves well, persevering through their occasional mistakes. Joshua and Ito seemed to have the flashiest plays on the court, and at one point Joshua smashed the ball into the RH player (being the nice guy he is he apologised right after). They took the first set 6-0, and Ito closed the second set with a power smash to end 6-3.
Joshua and Ito (right) showing their teamwork and composure as they take a vital game
With an overall score of 4-1, Eusoff Tennis takes their second last step in their IHG journey and are prepared to face off Temasek Hall in the finals. It’s going to be an intense finals so do come down to the courts to support our hardworking players!
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