Another Chance for Asia to Dominate
The Thai public awaited Ratchanok Intanon's performance. She is expected to show her strength again in the women's singles at the Toyota Thailand Open 2020.
This is after the Yonex Thailand Open last week where the 25-year-old woman was stopped in the quarter-finals. Ratchanok lost two straight games 20-22, 12-21 by South Korea's An Se Young.
Now at the Toyota Thailand Open, the three-time successive junior world champion is back on her feet in the quarter-finals. Ratchanok was able to beat Sung Ji Hyun from South Korea in three games 19-21, 21-16, 21-9.
In the quarter-finals, Ratchanok, seeded fourth, will meet her old Indian rival Pusarla V. Sindhu. The finalists for the Rio 2016 Olympics stopped Malaysian player Kisona Selvaduray in the previous round with ease, winning 21-10, 21-12.
Ratchanok qualifying for the quarter finals also proved that the host's strength should not be underestimated. Moreover, at the Yonex Thailand Open last week, Thailand were able to win a title through the mixed doubles pair Dechapol Puavaranukroh / Sapsiree Taerattanachai who also qualified for the quarter-finals of this competition. Apparently, they will have no trouble repeating their success because Indonesia's second seed Praveen Jordan / Melati Daeva Oktavianti had already lost in the first round.
In the quarter-finals, Thailand and Malaysia seemed to show off their strength. These two countries have many representatives.
On one side, both Malaysia and Thailand are missing strong players in some categories: Malaysia in women’s singles while Thailand in men’s singles. But their power is well compensated on the other side, the doubles categories — women’s doubles, men’s doubles and mixed doubles — where these two countries have even more than one representing players.
Indonesia, on the other hand, has been low on their performance, especially in singles where they now no longer have representing players after Anthony Sinisuka Ginting and Gregoria Mariska were defeated.
Meanwhile, in the men's doubles, Indonesia only has their senior pair Hendra Setiawan / Mohammad Ahsan, Greysia Polii / Apriyani Rahayu in the women's doubles and Hafiz Faisal / Gloria Emmanuele Widjaja for the mixed doubles.
As for Malaysia, in the men's doubles, they have Aaron Chia / Soh Wooi Yik who beat Indonesia's youth doubles Leo Rolly Carnando / Daniel Marthin 21-16, 6-21,21-12. They will face Goh V Shem / Tan Wee Kiong who defeated host Supak Jomkoh / Kittninupang Kedren 21-15, 16-21, 21-15.
Meanwhile, European representatives at the Toyota Thailand Open have increasingly decreased. One by one the representatives fall before the quarter-finals, however there are still those that remain.
Europe still has representatives in the men's singles, women's singles, and in the men’s doubles. These include players such as Viktor Axelsen and Carolina Marin who both won the men and women's singles categories last week at the Yonex Thailand Open.
As far as Toyota Thailand Open quarter finals go, Asia is still dominating in terms of players. Will Asia be able to get more gold in this tournament? Let’s keep giving our best support to make it come true!
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