Home favourites Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet ended the campaign in their last Hong Kong Open after losing to Jiang Zhen Bang and Wei Ya Xin of China in the MIXED DOUBLES semifinals.
Against the second seeds from the mainland, Tang/Tse pair could do little to make it to their first final of the home tournament, even under huge support from the strong crowd at the Hong Kong Coliseum.
Jiang and Wei took the first game 21-12 and were never in fear of losing the tie with another comfortable 21-6 win in the second, wrapping the match in a mere 31 minutes.
The home pair felt sorry to bid farewell to the Hong Kong event and would be missing it especially the support they received from the fans over these years. “This was the last time we played in front of the home crowd and felt sorry of leaving. We don’t always feel we had the support from the entire crowd. The atmosphere was very heart touching and really wanted to continue to enjoy this moment.”
Now staying seventh in the world rankings, Tang/Tse pair reached the Hong Kong Open final last year and was seeded third this year. They twice played the same Chinese combination and lost both. But with the strong support from the fans, they were able to play their 100 per cent, even though they once again fell short against the quality opponents.
With support from the crowd, the home pair took the initiative to attack from the beginning, but the Chinese pair was also able to capitalize their mistakes and launched fierce counterattack. Tang and Tse were 5-11 behind in the halfway mark and were unable to recover. Tang also needed treatment at 9-16 because of a finger injury before losing the game 21-12 following a series strong attack by Jiang and Wei.
Both pairs increased the tempo when the second game began and the fans were thrilled when the home pair come from behind to lead 4-3, but that was the best they could offer. Jiang and Wei regained the lead when they made it 7-4 before extending it to 11-6 midway through the game. Jiang and Wei, widely regarded the new generation stars of China’s top MIXED DOUBLES pair, were in total control before snatching the match with a 21-6 win. This was also Tang/Tse pair’s successive defeat to the same Chinese opponents after losing in last month’s Japan Open.
Tse was disappointed they still could not find the key to beat the mainlanders. “We knew they were very fast but still could not find the right way to tackle them and lost the match by a big margin.”
Tang said they had reached the target of making it to the semifinals. “Although we lost today and lost by quite a margin, we are still happy with our overall performance in the whole tournament. From the first match to the semifinals, we were able to meet the target of winning matches as many as possible. We only feel a bit sorry of failing to deliver our best in today’s semifinals.”
The home fans brought a lot of supporting props to bolster up the pair and some of them even waited outside the venue until midnight to meet the pair days before. Tang was deeply impressed by the support while Tse said she thought she had become a popular star in a concert when watching the supporting banners on her. She hoped the fans could also bring same kind of support to other Hong Kong athletes.
Exited from the tournament, it also means Tang/Tse pair has completed their last match in the Hong Kong Open and tears were found in their eyes during the post-match interview. “This is our last match in tournament and we certain will be missing it a lot. I have played the tournament for many years and seldom do I feel the entire crowd was in support of you. The atmosphere was fantastic and we really want to continue to enjoy.” Tang also said it would be the last time they worked with head coach Tim He Yiming in the home tournament and would miss it. Tse said in tears with her eyes, “Many thanks to the support of the fans over these years and thank them for bringing us many supporting props.”
Also, Lee Cheuk Yiu, who lost in the MEN’S SINGLES quarterfinals, attended a “Meet the Player Session” which attracted more than 60 fans who braved the rain to take part in the event. When Lee arrived the venue, many fans cheered for him and asked for autographs on tickets, rackets and even I-pads. Natalie, who was in the front of the waiting queue, said she went for the tournament in the morning before lining up for more than an hour to meet the player. Lee felt very happy of attending the function, saying it’s always a good opportunity to talk to the fans directly.
