Pictured: Oliver Leydon-Davis and Anona Pak. Photo credit: Luis Veniegra
The Mixed Doubles pair from New Zealand are chasing qualification for next year’s Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Recently, Oliver Leydon-Davis and Anona Pak enjoyed a run through to the finals in the Sydney International.
This week, the pair are competing at the 44th YONEX Hungarian International Championships, where they secured a spot in the Quarter Finals following a win over Ukrainian opponents:
Oliver Leydon-Davis/Anona Pak (NZL) vs Mykhaylo Makhnovskiy/Anastasiya Prozorova (UKR) 21-14 21-15
Their victory set up a clash against the Canadian first seeds and world number 32 pair, Joshua Hurlburt-Yu and Josephine Wu. The underdogs from New Zealand got off to a great start, narrowly dropping the first game in extension and taking the second game in emphatic form.
But the Canadians retaliated, seizing every opportunity to capitalise on the points as they themselves chase the Olympic Games qualification.
- Joshua Hurlburt-Yu/Josephine Wu (CAN) vs Oliver Leydon-David/Anona Pak (NZL) 22-20 15-21 21-14
Earlier in the day, Leydon-Davis also teamed up with fellow compatriot, Abhinav Manota in the Men’s Doubles. Unfortunately, the pair weren’t successful in their venture against Korean powerhouses (and players previously ranked as high as 3 in the world in different partnerships) Dukyoung and Sa Rang.
- Kim Dukyoung/Kim Sa Rang (KOR) va Oliver Leydon-Davis/Abhinav Manota (NZL) 21-13 21-9
Elsewhere in the draw, Australia’s Louisa Ma put on a strong display against Bulgarian sixty seed, Linda Zetchiri, who is ranked 67 in the world to Louisa’s 111. Ma managed to take the second game but ultimately didn’t progress through to the Quarter Finals.
- Linda Zetchiri (BUL) vs Louisa Ma (AUS) 21-15 13-21 21-12
Abhinav Manota also faced tough competition from a higher ranked opponents:
- Maxime Moreels (BEL) vs Abhinav Manota (NZL) 21-17 21-17
Check out all the results from the 44th YONEX Hungarian International Championships 2019 on Tournament Software.
