Chen smashes Boonsak's dream of winning his second Thailand Open crown

[BADMINTON] Local ace Boonsak Ponsana saved five match-points in the titanic final clash against world No 2 and second-seeded Chen Hong from China before going down a heart-felt, hard-fought 57-minute thriller 14-21 21-11 21-23 in the SCG Thailand Open Gold Grand Prix at the Nimibutr Gymnasium on Sunday.

A drum-beating, flag-waving crowd of estimated 4,000 Thai fans were cheering Boonsak, the 2004 Thailand Open champion, all the way. However, Chen silenced the vociferous crowd, displaying the incredible speed and power at the net to win the opener 21-14.

Boonsak, widely known as Super Man on home soil, came back on track in the second game after the Chinese started making several unforced mistakes. Boonsak, who captured the Singapore Open Super Series early this year, entertained his supporting fans with powerful cross-court smashes and terrific drops to seal the comfortable second game 21-11.

The Thai star remained in form in the decider, which he took the commanding 11-8 lead. Chen, runner-up in this year's Asian Championship, wanted to make a step better than what he had done last year when he was beaten in the semi-finals. As coming this farm the Chinese could not slip the chance away this time. He pulled his game together and caught the Thai at 16-16 before storming on his superb form. As the Chinese led 16-20, Boonsak upped his tempo, counter-attacking well to save four match-points and forced deuce again at 20-20.

He saved another match-point when the on-going game was tied at 21-21. However, it was the Chinese who played cool under pressure and his greater determination bore fruits shortly afterwards. He bagged two consecutive points to eventually win the see-saw battle.

For the victory, Chen captured the prestigious HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn's Trophy and US$9,600, while Boonsak pocketed US$4,800. 

Preechachan Wiriyanupappong

The Nation