SINGAPORE: Local shuttlers had a mixed start on the first day of the main round of the Li-Ning Singapore Open 2011 badminton championship on Wednesday. Defending women's doubles champions Yao Lei and Shinta Mulia Sari moved into the last 16, but only after a tricky three-set win over England's Mariana Agathangelou and Heather Olver at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. Yao Lei and Shinta, who became the first Singaporeans in 20 years to win a title at the tournament, made a poor start, losing the opening set 21-19, before recovering to take the second set 21-8 to force a rubber, which they won 21-16.
"We were too rushed at the start and we made mistakes. In the second set, we were more patient to see what their weaknesses were," said Shinta. Yao Lei added: "It wasn't an easy match but we kept telling each other not to be distracted and do what we're supposed to do." They will now face eighth seeds Valeri Sorokina and Nina Vislova of Russia on Thursday for a spot in the quarter-finals.Joining them in action on Thursday will be team-mates Chen Jiayuan and Xing Aiying, who beat England's Jenny Wallwork and Gabrielle White 21-16, 21-9 to reach the last 16. The pair will face fourth seeds Shizuka Matsuo and Mami Naito of Japan. But Vanessa Neo and Thng Ting Ting are out, after going down 2-1 to Denmark's Line Damkjaer Kruse and Marie Roepke. Singapore's other pair, Liang Xiaoyu and Tan Wei Han, were also knocked out by Australia's Leanne Choo and Renuga Veeran 2-1.
In the women's singles, Singapore's Gu Juan reached the last 16 after edging out Japan's Ayane Kurihara 2-1 (14-21, 21-19, 21-13). She will face either Japan's Ai Goto or seventh-seed Porntip Buranaprasertsuk of Thailand on Thursday. However, Singapore's Fu Mingtian and Chen were first-round casualties. Fu put up a spirited display before bowing out to China's world No 1 Wang Shixian 2-0 (21-10, 21-15), while Chen fell to Thailand's Inthanon Ratchanok by the same scoreline.
Men's singles first round results:
Taufik Hidayat (INA) bt Daren Liew (MAS) 22-24, 21-12, 21-18
Bao Chunlai (CHN) bt Sony Dwi Kuncoro (INA) 21-19, 21-13
Chen Long (CHN) bt Yunus Alamsyah (INA) 21-15, 21-7
Park Sung-Hwan (KOR) bt P. Kashyap (IND) 21-15, 21-14
Chen Jin (CHN) bt Hans-Kristian Vittinghus (DEN) 21-23, 21-9, 21-10
Marc Zwiebler (GER) bt Chou Tien-chen (TPE) 14-21, 21-18, 21-19
Rajiv Ouseph (ENG) bt Brice Leverdez (FRA) 19-21, 21-14, 21-17
Peter Gade (DEN) bt Tommy Sugiarto (INA) 21-11, 21-16
Simon Santoso (INA) bt Nguyen Tien Minh (VIE) 15-21, 24-22, 21-17
Lin Dan (CHN) bt Shon Wan-Ho (KOR) 21-14, 21-15
Jan O Jorgensen (DEN) bt Kenichi Tago (JPN) 21-19, 21-14
Viktor Axelsen (DEN) bt Wong Choong Hann (MAS) 25-23, 21-19
Du Pengyu (CHN) bt Boonsak Ponsana (THA) 15-21, 21-13, 21-8
Wang Zhengming (CHN) bt Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk (THA) 21-18, 21-15
Sho Sasaki (JPN) Dionysius Hayom Rumbaka (INA) 21-17, 17-21, 21-18
Lee Hyun-Il (KOR) bt Kazushi Yamada (JPN) 21-14, 21-13
Women's singles first round results:
Wang Shixian (CHN) bt Fu Mingtian (SIN) 21-10, 21-15
Tine Baun (DEN) bt Linda Zechiri (BUL) 21-11, 21-10
Wang Xin (CHN) bt Pi Hongyan (FRA) 21-11, 21-8
Yao Jie (NED) bt Sung Ji-Hyun (KOR) 23-21, 21-15
Wang Yihan (CHN) bt Adrianti Firdasari (INA) 21-17, 21-17
Wang Lin (CHN) bt Anastasia Prokopenko (RUS) 21-15, 21-8
Juliane Schenk (GER) bt Lindaweni Fanetri (INA) 21-18, 21-16
Ratchanok Inthanon (THA) bt Chen Jiayuan (SIN) 21-13, 21-12
Gu Juan (SIN) bt Ayane Kurihara (JPN) 14-21, 21-19, 21-13
Aprilla Yuswandari (INA) bt Eriko Hirose (JPN) 21-18, 21-19
Sayaka Sato (JPN) bt Maria Febe Kusumastuti 21-12, 18-21, 21-16
Cheng Shao-chieh (TPE) bt Petya Nedelcheva (BUL) 21-17, 18-21, 21-9
Bae Youn-Joo (KOR) bt Salakjit Ponsana (THA) 21-15, 21-11
Saina Nehwal (IND) bt Lu Lan (CHN) 21-18, 13-21, 21-16
Ai Goto (JPN) bt Porntip Buranaprasertsuk (THA) 21-11, 21-7
Tai Tzu-Ying (TPE) bt Arundhati Pantawane (IND) 21-16, 21-13
