jpnn.com, BALI - Indonesian badminton players Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu have failed to advance at the BWF World Tour Finals after losing to the Japanese duo, Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida.
Competing at the Bali International Convention Center, Saturday (04/12), Greysia and Apriyani lost in the rubber game, with a score of 14-21, 21-13, and 21-23 in 1 hour and 16 minutes (BWF version).
ALSO SEE: List of 2021 BWF Awardees: Indonesia Gets Two Prizes
In the first game, both pairs were involved in a tight competition until the score was equally strong 7-7. Unfortunately, Greysia and Apriyani conceded three points in a row and trailed 7-10.
Matsuyama and Shida finally closed the first interval with an 11-8 advantage.
ALSO SEE: Lee Zii Jia Secures Ticket for World Tour Semifinals
After the break, the Japanese duo was able to keep the score from 13-8 as Greysia and Apriyani's observations did not work.
After that, Matsuyama and Shida shot up to 17-10 taking advantage of Greysia and Apriyani's poor field coordination.
ALSO SEE: Lee Zii Jia Destroys Toma Junior Popov in Less Than One Hour
Several times, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic champions left empty space for Matsuyama and Shida to gain points.
Matusyama and Shida finally closed the first game with a 21-14 advantage.
Entering the second game, Greysia and Apriyani seemed to be playing more attacking. The world's fifth-ranked pair tried hard to break Matsuyama's defense.
Greysia and Apriyani shot up to 7-1. However, the Japanese pair was able to bounce back by winning four consecutive points to bring the score to 5-7.
Luckily, Greysia and Apriyani did not lose focus and were able to win the second interval with an 11-6 advantage.
After the break, the Greysia and Apriyani were able to keep the score at 14-8. Hard smashes launched by the runner-ups of the 2021 Indonesia Open really made it difficult for Matsuyama and Shida.
Shida in the second game seemed to be playing a little off guard. The defense was not solid, and many of her punches went off the field.
Greysia and Apriyani used this to gain points up to 17-10 and closed the second game with a score of 21-13.
In the decisive third game, Greysia and Apriyani did not relax with their attacks. Matsuyama and Shida were also not as solid as usual.
After having a long 6-3 lead, Matusyama and Shida went ahead with 8-6 over Greysia and Apriyani.
The Japanese duo finally closed the second interval with an 11-9 advantage.
After the break, the two pairs were involved in a tight game until the score was 20-20.
Greysia and Apriyani continued to pursue the Japanese duo's score to 21-21.
Unfortunately, at critical points, Greysia and Apriyani were not calm until they finally lost at 21-23.
This result led Matsuyama and Shida to qualify for the finals to challenge Kim Soyeong and Kong Heeyong.
The South Korean duo locked tickets for the finals after their opponents in the semifinals, Gabriela Stoeva and Stefani Stoeva, chose to withdraw due to injury. (mcr15/mcr20/jpnn)
This news has been broadcast on JPNN.com with the title: 1 Jam Membara, Greysia/Apriyani Gagal Lolos ke Final BWF World Tour Finals 2021