SEA Games: Mixed results for S’pore shuttlers

SINGAPORE — Teenage shuttler Loh Kean Yew and teammate Derek Wong are through to the quarterfinals of the men’s singles at the SEA Games after posting victories on court at the Singapore Indoor Stadium today (June 13).

Top Singaporean player Wong made light work of his opponent, Cheng Por Rom of Cambodia, notching a 21-10, 21-7 victory. Kean Yew, who is ranked 137th in the world, delivered the highlight of the day for the fans, upsetting Vietnam’s second seeded Nguyen Tien Minh (world No 28) in a nail-biting thriller that went down to the wire before the 17-year-old claimed victory 21-16, 15-21, 21-17.

“I am super super happy,” said Kean Yew after the match. “This is the second breakthrough for me after last year’s Singapore International Series, and Tien Minh is the highest ranked player I’ve ever beaten.

“I just tried to overcome his speed and break him down. I am the underdog so I am confident. Also the home crowd support really helped me and I kept telling myself I had to fight all the way. My aim now is to try my best to get into the final.”

While the men are through to the next round, the women’s singles saw mixed results, with Liang Xiaoyu beating Yee Le Le of Myanmar 2-0 to advance to the top eight, while Grace Chua was beaten 21-11, 21-19 by Indonesia’s Lindaweni Fanetri.

Mixed doubles pair Danny Bawa Chrisnanta and Vanessa Neo were eliminated from the competition after a 2-0 loss to Malaysians Chan Peng Soon and Goh Liu Ying, with men’s doubles pair Hendra Wijaya and Terry Hee, women’s doubles pairs Neo and Shinta Sari Mulia, Tan Wei Han and Elaine Chua also following suit after suffering losses today.

But the men’s doubles pair of Chayut Triyachart and Danny are through to the top eight after defeating Aniloud Keophithoun and P Fongmalayseng 21-12, 21-15.