Story by Rachel Yip/Red Sports. Photos by Lim Yong Teck and Soh Jun Wei/Red Sports
Feng Tianwei of Singapore returns a shot against Tamolwan Khetkhuan of Thailand during the second singles match. (Photo 1 © Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports)
Singapore Indoor Stadium, Monday, June 8, 2015 — Singapore won the gold medal in the women’s table tennis team event after they beat Thailand 3-2 at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. Thailand put up a strong fight but they could not match Singapore, who were playing before a strong home crowd that also featured President Tony Tan Keng Yam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Singapore failed to open with a win as Thailand’s highest-ranked female player, Nanthana Khomwong, got the better of Yu Mengyu to win 3–1.
Feng started the second game strong and surged to a 4–0 lead. But Tamolwan Khetkhuan gave Feng a tough fight and at one point led 9–7. Feng, buoyed by the crowd’s cheers of “Let’s Go, Singapore!” and “Jiayou!”, held her ground to take the first set 13–11.
The second set continued to be an evenly-matched contest, with Feng narrowly winning the set 12–10. Needing a strong comeback, Khetkhuan surged to take the third set 11-7. The game was closely fought, but the Thai was no match for Feng, who took the fourth set 11–6 to win the game 3-1.
Isabelle Li tried to keep up the winning streak, but lost to Orawan Paranang 2-3. She took the first set 11–7 but failed to maintain her lead, dropping the next two sets.
At one point in the fourth set, Paranang’s clever attacking play even left Isabelle sprawling on the ground. A determined Isabelle fought back to win the set 11–8, but lost the deciding set 7-11.
Feng was up again in the fourth game against Komwong. This time, the Singaporean triumphed, with Feng winning the game 3–0.
With Singapore and Thailand tied at 2–2, Yu Mengyu faced Khetkhuan. Yu lost the first set 10–12, but stormed back to take the next set 11–2.
With the gold on the line, the third set was closely fought, with Yu narrowly beating Khetkhuan 15–13. Buoyed by her win in that tough set, Yu held on to win the last set 11–5, clinching the gold medal for Singapore.
Women’s Team Results
Final
Yu Mengyu (SIN) 1 Komwong Nanthana (THA) 3
(7-11, 11-8, 10-12, 9-11)
Feng Tianwei (SIN) 3 Khetkhuan Tamolwan (THA) 1
(13-11, 12-10, 7-11, 11-6)
Isabelle Li (SIN) 2 Paranang Orawan (THA) 3
(11-7, 9-11, 5-11, 11-8, 7-11)
Feng Tianwei (SIN) 3 Komwong Nanthana (THA) 0
(12-10, 11-8, 11-1)
Yu Mengyu (SIN) 3 Khetkhuan Tamolwan (THA) 1
(10-12, 11-1, 15-13, 11-5)
More photos next page
Leave A Comment