Malaysian duo Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif and Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari managed to put Danish Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen under pressure throughout the second match at Yonex Copenhagen Masters, but in the end the Danes claimed the victory as expected.
The second match of the day was in the men's doubles' category. Here, the home crowd favourites, Mathias Boe and Carsten Mogensen, were up against Malaysian visitors, Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif and Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari.
Last year Latif and Tazari also featured in the programme. On that occasion, they lost to an other Danish pair, Mads Conrad-Petersen and Rasmus Bonde, and thereby only got one match in the tournament. This year, they would try to do better.
Malaysians couldn't maintain their lead
And try the did indeed. But it did not pay off from the beginning of the match however. The Danes were off to the best start and quite easily claimed the first game by 21-13.
But after that the Malaysian got a better grib on the match. The surprised everyone in the hall by playing a lot better in the beginning of the second game, and before they know of it, they were ahead by 11-4 at the interval.
The Danes woke up again after that however, and raised their level of play in the second half of the game. They first equalized at 14-14, and in the end they showed why their are ranked no. 3 in the world. When the score was levelled at 19-19 they played two good rallies and grasped the victory right before Latif and Tazari.
Danes not in top shape
After the match, Mathias Boe told us how he experienced the match.
- We're on top in the first game, but in the second the wind troubles us a bit, and we're also finding it difficult to keep our focus.
- We've had some days off here during the holidays, so naturally we're not in our best shape. But we try to win everytime go on court, and today was no exception. And when we play in front of our home crowd like this, you of course gain a little extra from that. We will try to use that and go all the way tomorrow, Mathias Boe declaired.
Latif always enjoys Masters
Also Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif had something to say after the match.
- I am disappointed that we lose the second game. We should be able to hold it. We lose our focus a bit, and they also adjust their tactics, which we find it hard to adapt to. In the end, it was clear that they are a bit more experienced than os, but I'm quite glad with the way we played overall.
About the tournament itself, Latif also said:
- This is the fourth time I am here, and it is a pleasure every year. It's Christmas and everybody is happy. As a player you can play more freely than usual, and we enjoy that alot. We are always glad to be invited, and we really like the Danish crowd.