Story by REDintern Jia Lin Goh. Photos by Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports
Zhu Bolin of RI lunges for a shot against Matthew Chin of SJI. Bolin defeated Matthew 2–0 (21–4, 21–8). (Photo 1 © Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports)
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), Thursday, February 27, 2014 — Raffles Institution (RI) dismantled St. Joseph’s Institution (SJI) 5–0 to advance to the final of the South Zone B Division Boys Badminton Championship.
RI entered this matchup as the winner of Group X, having defeated Ang Mo Kio Secondary School, Beatty Secondary School and Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road) by identical 5–0 scorelines.
SJI were second in Group Y, having beaten Fairfield Methodist School and Guangyang Secondary School 5–0 each and losing only one match against Anglo-Chinese School (Independent).
10 minutes was all it took for Zhu Bolin to attain the first point of this matchup for RI. Bolin was in control for the entire game. His powerful smashes, drop shots and net kills rendered his opponent, Matthew Chin, helpless. Bolin won the game 21–4, 21–8.
Deo Teo and Ian Tan of RI went up against Denzyl Khoo and Tan Pei Sheng of SJI in the first doubles game of the day. In the first set, Deo and Ian went into the interval with an 11–4 lead. This lead was slimmed down to 15–11 after the interval as Deo and Ian committed several unforced errors during rallies that allowed Denzyl and Pei Sheng to gain three successive points. The turning point came when Pei Sheng’s serve failed to cross the net. From then on, Deo and Ian would go on to obtain five straight points. Though Denzyl managed to save a match-point, Deo and Ian took the set 21–12. The second set also spotted a similar scoreline with Deo and Ian recording a 21–13 victory.
The second singles match was a one-sided affair. A ruthless Andy Kwek Jun Liang of RI put up a strong attacking display studded with creative skill and control to beat Neaton Ang Jia Jun of SJI 21–4, 21–9. Thus, Andy secured the third point to send Raffles into the finals.
Despite losing this matchup, SJI players, Clarence Koh and Bryan Lee, still fought resolutely against Lim Rui Rong and Nicholas Seat of Raffles. Unlike the previous three games where RI appeared to be the dominant side, neither pair gained a clear upper hand.
The first highlight of the game came when RI were leading by a scoreline of 7–5. Having forced Rui Rong and Nicholas to the backcourt, an SJI player smartly executed a fast drop shot that sent Rui Rong diving to receive the shuttle, only to end up sliding out of the court. The game went into the interval with RI holding a slim lead of 11–9.
After the interval, RI managed to extend their lead to 17–11 with smashes and SJI errors. At one point, Raffles even recreated the scene from the first highlight of this game. However, it was Clarence from SJI who was sent scrambling for the shuttle and taking a tumble on the court. Clarence and Bryan started staging a comeback thereafter to close the gap at 17–15. But, Rui Rong and Nicholas survived the scare to reach game point with four match-point opportunities. RI won the first set 21–16.
The second set was equally intense with even more rallies. RI prevailed again to take the second set 21–16.
Neo Wei Ren of RI was rarely troubled by Sherwin Ng of St. Joseph’s in the third singles. Wei Ren grabbed the fifth point for RI in this matchup by outplaying Sherwin 21–5, 21–9.
RI are due to face Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) in the finals on Wednesday, March 5, at Toa Payoh Indoor Sports Hall. ACS(I) secured a comprehensive 5–0 victory over Ang Mo Kio Secondary in the other semi-final.
SJI will face Ang Mo Kio Secondary in the third-place playoff on Monday, March 3, at Kuo Chuan Presbyterian Secondary School.
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