That’s Olympic stuff!
Monday, 23 Jul 20
by tan ming wai
The right mix: Malaysia’s Goh Soon Huat (right) and Shevon Lai Jemie celebrating after beating Indonesia’s Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir in the mixed doubles final at the Singapore Open yesterday. — AFP
PETALING JAYA: Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie have done what compatriots Chan Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying failed to do in the last six years – beat Olympic champions Tontowi Ahmad-Liliyana Natsir of Indonesia.
World No. 8 Soon Huat-Shevon pulled off a sensational 21-19, 21-18 win over the world No. 1 pair in the mixed doubles final of the Singapore Open at the Singapore Indoor Stadium yesterday.
They sealed the victory in 36 minutes to become the first-ever Malaysian mixed doubles champions since the tournament’s inception in 1987.
It was certainly an impressive win for Soon Huat-Shevon, who took on the in-form Rio Olympic gold medallists – and three-time winners of the Singapore Open – only for the first time.
Tontowi-Liliyana arrived in Singapore fresh from their Indonesian Open triumph, where they defeated Peng Soon-Liu Ying in the final two weeks ago while Soon Huat-Shevon, in contrast, failed to even clear the first rounds at the Opens in Malaysia and Indonesia.
Shevon was left pinching herself after the win.
“We’re really surprised with the win! It’s just unbelievable,” said a jubilant Shevon.
image: https://www.thestar.com.my/~/media/online/2018/07/22/23/15/huat-shevon.ashx?h=596&w=450&la=en
Deserving winners: Goh Soon Huat (right) and Shevon Lai Jemie posing with their prizes. — AFP
“We just wanted to give the Olympic champions a good fight, but we didn’t expect to beat them.
“This is definitely our best performance this year. It’s refreshing to win a title after struggling to impress of late.
“This win is a timely confidence booster too ahead of our preparation for the World Championships next week (in Nanjing from July 30-Aug 5).”
It’s Soon Huat-Shevon’s second triumph of the year after capturing the German Open in March.
They now have four titles to their names, having also won the Malaysian International Challenge and Scottish Open in 2016.
Mixed doubles head coach Pang Cheh Chang was pleased with his charges’ display but refused to get carried away.
“I’m happy for Shevon and Soon Huat. This is a much-needed victory for them especially after their inconsistency recently,” said Cheh Chang.
“But I hope they’ll keep their feet firmly on the ground and cut the celebration short. There’s much work to do with the World Championships and Asian Games coming up next.
“What’s more important is to build on the win and keep the momentum going,” he added.
Read more at https://www.thestar.com.my/sport/badminton/2018/07/23/thats-olympic-stuff/#Dd3G4tkFv8UEEe5h.99
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