Asuncions barge into semis, thump Indons

Kennie and Kennevic Asuncion dazzled Puri Setyo and Lili Wang of Indonesia with superb shotmaking to pull off a remarkable 21-12, 21-19 victory that clinched the Filipino pair a seat in the semifinals of the mixed doubles event in the $120,000 Bingo Bonanza Philippine Open Badminton Championships presented by PLDT Business Solutions at the Philsports Arena.

Egged on by an appreciative Friday crowd that included top badminton officials Ming Ramos and Edgar Aglipay, the Filipino brother-sister tandem unleashed a variety of shots to startle their Indon rivals but it was their drop shots that hurt their rivals the most for the win that kept the host country’s campaign going.

"We varied our shots well and they were bothered by it," said Kennie, whose mixed doubles world ranking with Kennevic dropped from 22nd last year to 69th this year due to lack of tournaments abroad.

But the staging of the RP Open, the first four-star, IBF-ranking tournament to be staged here, could be the start of something big for the Filipino shuttlers in terms of exposure and level of competition although all but the Asuncions took the early exit after bowing to superior, more experienced rivals.

The day, however, belonged to Saina Nehwal of India, the 16-year-old wonder from Hyderabad who stunned top seed Xu Huaiwen of Germany, 12-21, 21-17, 21-17, in the biggest reversal so far in the tournament to advance to the semifinal round of the women’s singles.

Nehwal fought back from a lopsided first set loss with a superb all-around game in the next two that completely baffled the world No. 4 ranked player in 53 minutes to arrange a semis showdown with Ai Goto of Japan, who thumped Fransisca Ratnasari of Indonesia, 21-12, 16-21, 21-17.

Chie Umezu of Japan also humbled fourth pick Anu Nieminen of Finland, 21-19, 21-14, to set up the other semis duel with Wong Pei Xian Julia of Malaysia, who overcame No. 2 Yip Pui Yin, 17-21, 21-13, 21-14.

The Asuncions’ victory lined them up against the tandem of Tri Kusharjanto and Minarti Timur, also of Indonesia, who shocked top seed Songpol Anukritayawan and Kunchala Vorawichitchakul of Thailand in a pulsating 21-18, 21-18 win.

The Asuncions, who have assured themselves of at least $2,640 (P137,280) for making it to the last four, know that they’re in for rough sailing.

"They’re more experienced than us, they’re a veteran pair," said the 26-year-old Kennevic referring to the Indonesians, the silver medallists in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

"We need to improve our shots and play smarter and better for us to have a chance in beating them," he added.

The crowd could also be a factor as the Asuncions are sure to draw inspiration from an expected big number of local fans out to cheer up the last Pinoy bets standing in the tournament sponsored by Bingo Bonanza, JVC (PHILS.), Inc. PLDT and Smart.

The Asuncions and the Indons dispute the first finals berth at 2 p.m.

Tickets are pegged at Category 1 (P500); Category 2 (P350); Category 3 (P250); Category 4 (P150); Gallery (P20).

Games today and tomorrow’s final matches will be aired on RPN 9, IBC-13 and Solar Sports.

Second pick Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthongkam of Thailand and sixth seed Muhammmad Rizal and Gresya Pilii of Indonesia also hurdled their respective rivals to set up the other semis duel.

Prapakamol and Thoungthongkam downed No. 8 Klaus Raffeiner and Agnese Allegrini, 21-7, 21-12, while Rizal and Pilii stunned No. 4 Tran Thanh Hai and Le Ngoc Nguyen Nhung of Vietnam, 21-8, 21-9, to complete the semis cast in this event backed by Jam 88.3, 99.5 RT, Magic 89.9, 103.5 K-Lite, Wave 89.1, Snickers, Toby’s Sports, The STAR, Badminton Asia, Inquirer Badminton, Fossil Watches, Bacchus Energy Drink, Accel, Yonex Sunrise, Crowne Plaza, the official hotel, and Solar Sports, the official TV partner.