Maybank Malaysia Open Final Day Wrap Up

The final day of the Maybank Malaysia Open 2012 attracted the biggest crowd throughout the tournament.

Most of them started to fill the seats as the men’s singles event was about to start. It was obvious who they were coming to watch – none other than Datuk Lee Chong Wei.

To defend his title, he had to face the very talented youngster, Kenichi Tago.

Below are the full match reports for all the matches.

Zhang Nan/Zhao Yun Lei (CHN) v Xu Cheng/Ma Jin (CHN)

The first match of the Maybank Malaysia Open 2012 final featured a China vs China mixed doubles match.

It was the current world no.1 Zhang Nan/Zhao Yun Lei against the current world no.2 Xu Cheng/ Ma Jin.

Xu Cheng and Ma Jin’s Strength

The world no.2 mixed doubles pair Xu Cheng and Ma Jin have very obvious strengths. Xu Cheng has the most powerful smash among all the mixed doubles pairs in the world, while Ma Jin is probably the best at playing near the front court.

This can be a double edged sword. Their strength is also a weakness. In order to make use of their strengths, Xu Cheng needs to be at the back and Ma Jin in front.

Zhang Nan and Zhao Yun Lei’s Prevented Their Opponents from Utilizing Their Strength

Zhang Nan and Zhao Yun Lei knew their opponents so well that they prevented them from using their strengths.

Xu Cheng did not get a chance to exploit his powerful shots from behind the court. The world no.1 mixed doubles pair pressured Xu Cheng and Ma Jin so often that they could not get into an offensive position.

Zhang Nan and Zhao Yun Lei’s Tactics

Zhang Nan and Zhao Yun Lei kept all their shots as low and flat as possible. The only used drives and low clears. They also exploited gaps left by Xu Cheng and Ma Jin by driving shuttles to empty gaps.

Ma Jin’s Performance

Ma Jin had always played well at the front court. Today she was just not on form, making a few of unforced errors.

Overall, there was little hope for Xu Cheng and Ma Jin in this game.

The match was ended with 2 straight games at 21-12, 21-9.

Lee Chong Wei v Kenichi Tago Match Analysis

The men’s singles match was the main highlight of the day.

Lee Chong Wei had the obvious home ground advantage, but he still had a tough opponent to overcome.

Kenichi Tago Trailing

Lee Chong Wei took a far lead in the first game. He left no chance for the young Kenichi Tago to capitalise on anything.

Minor Setback

There was a short delay in the second game. There appeared to be some minor damages on the tournament court on Kenichi’s side.

This did not prevent the game from moving on.

Confidence and Mental Strength

The world no.1’s biggest weakness has always been his mental strength.

In most of the matches he lost, it was most likely due to a lack of confidence.

Here at the Malaysian Super Series, Lee Chong Wei was at his confidence level was at its highest!

He played so well, most of his smashes landed accurately on the sidelines.

A Wide Score Gap… Again

The aggressive play from Lee Chong Wei had yet again widened the score gap in the second game.

Kenichi seemed to be going nowhere. He did not trouble Chong Wei in any way like he usually does.

Even when Chong Wei played several winning shots, Kenichi Tago continued to with his defensive game.

His inexperience was evident as the crowd might have intimidated him a little.

He not only continued with his defensive style but made many unforced errors. He hit his shots wide and long on several occasions.

It was undeniably an easy match for Lee Chong Wei at the Maybank Malaysia Open 2012 final.

This was not the best of Kenichi Tago, but it was good effort in putting a fight with the current world no.1.

However, credit has to go to Lee Chong Wei because he has always been difficult to beat on home ground.

Lee Chong Wei secured his 8th Malaysian Open title here at Maybank Malaysia Open 2012. The score was 21-6, 21-13.

First Taste of Glory for Chinese Taipei at the Malaysia Open

The men’s doubles finals featured a thrilling battle between 2 non-seeded pairs from Korea and Chinese Taipei, Cho Gun Woo/Shin Baek Choel and Fang Chieh Min/Lee Sheng Mu respectively.

Unfortunately the men’s doubles final of the Maybank Malaysia Open 2012 failed bring the best out of the game.

This was because the world’s top 4 badminton doubles pair were absent from the 2012 Malaysian Super Series.

The defending champions Chai Biao and Guo Zheng Dong ware eliminated at the semi finals. Former Olympic champions Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan were also eliminated before the finals.

Although the men’s double final was not of the highest class, it was a competitive match nonetheless.

The Match

The battle went into a thrilling 3 games match. The Koreans took a dominant position in the first game.

At this point the Chinese looked like they did not stand a chance to win.

The second game was a huge turning point for the Chinese. They worked their way through the game and turned the game around!

There was a sudden boost of confidence for the Chinese.

The Chinese were facilitating more attacks against the Koreans and their attacks were sharper and shots were more powerful.

The Koreans were struggling to deal with the sudden change of performance by the Chinese.

Fang and Lee gave a very hard time for the Koreans in the third set.

Eventually, they won the third game and became the first ever players from Chinese Taipei to win a Malaysia Badminton Open title.