Pictured: Janelle Pangilinan, Northern Marianas. Photo credit: Paul Foxall
Junior Individuals
The VICTOR Oceania Junior Individual Championships 2023 opened proceedings today at Auckland Badminton Stadium.
It was a largely successful day for the players from Australia and New Zealand. The Cook Islands’ Tereapii Akavi being one of the only non-Australian/New Zealand players to progress into the next round. Meanwhile, her compatriot Te Pa O Te Rangi Tupa came close to upsetting her New Zealand opponent over three close games.
- Tereapii Akavi (COK) vs Ashley Desert (NCL) 21-10 21-6
- Emily Lin (NZL) vs Te Pa O Te Rangi Tupa (COK) 22-20 14-21 21-16
“Badminton is not only about winning, what is important to me is that I do my best & perform a good show for the spectators. I enjoy the conditions in the venue here in Auckland, and I’m ready to give my best against the number one seed from Australia tomorrow”, says Tereapii.
Meanwhile, New Zealand’s Daniel Hu caused the biggest upset of the day as he defeated the second seeded Australian, Ephraim Steven Sam over three thrilling games which enticed the crowds.
- Daniel Hu (NZL) vs Ephraim Stephen Sam (AUS)[2] 16-21 21-16 21-17
“I was pretty nervous going into the match as he was second seed, but I just tried to do my best. I thought just run as hard as I could for every point & not give him any easy ones. In the first game I was quite inconsistent, in the second I thought to just try hit everything in & over, stay consistent & I was able to do that. I was really happy with the second half of the second game & the third as I stuck to the tactics my coach gave me and was able to consistently pull it off & keep my errors to a minimum”, says Daniel.
The only other upset of today’s draw came in the form of seventh seed Dion Binod (Australia), who was knocked out of the competition by New Zealand’s Samuel Navarra.
- Samuel Navarra (NZL) vs Dion Binod (AUS)[7] 21-19 21-14
Check out all results from the VICTOR Oceania Junior Individual Championships 2023 on Tournament Software. Photos, videos and more are available to view on Facebook and Instagram. Join the conversation by using the hashtag #VOC23
The draw continues to unfold from 10.30am (local time, GMT+13) tomorrow, starting with the men’s singles and doubles round 32.
Open Individuals
The Open Individuals also got underway on day four of the Continental Championships. Tahiti’s Remi Rossi is hoping to make up for last year’s disappointment when he crashed out in the third round. Today, the 2019 runner-up composed a steady performance to get past the ‘stress of the first round’.
- Remi Rossi (TAH) defeated Hongyuan Wong (AUS) 21-19 21-16
“It was a hard match because first it was the first round, second my opponent was a good player, and third the shuttle was fast. With the stress of the first round, it was hard to control the pace and the shuttle, so I am really happy to get the win”, says Remi.
There was a double Northern Marianas-Tonga clash in the women’s singles and doubles, featuring two of the same players. While both matches remained in relatively close contention, the players from Northern Marianas ultimately came out on top.
- Janelle Pangilinan (MNP) vs Lata ‘Isitolo (TGA) 21-14 21-15
“It was a good match, I was happy with the way I played. I stuck with my strategy to move my opponent around the court which opened up space for me to attack.”, says Janelle.
- Janelle Pangilinan/Jeanelyn Cardinio (MNP) vs Mele Lingisiva Kei/Lata ‘Isitolo (TGA) 21-11 21-15
“Firstly thank you for having us, it is a great opportunity for us to be here, it is our first time in New Zealand and at Oceania Championships, we are here to learn and gain more experience from all our games. Our match helped us find our rhythm since we are new partners, and we were happy with how we communicated on court. We are happy to play again tomorrow, and win more games hopefully”, says Jeanelyn
Meanwhile, a new Fijian/Tahitian partnership also caused an upset for the Tongan team in the men’s doubles.
- Liam Fong/Teiva Politi (FIJ/TAH) vs Siale Molitika/Taniela Ngaue (TGA) 21-11 21-15
“Obviously it’s a new partnership, we met at the Badminton Oceania training camp back in 2018, and we’ve practiced together in the last week. It’s really good to have these relationships in the Pacific to bring our countries together in a double’s combination. After 2 years of COVID & 1 year with injury this is my first tournament back. We communicated really well, we felt like the pressure was creeping up but we were able to stay focussed on the moment rather than the outcome. We really focussed on the tactics, as the match progressed we were more confident and relaxed. It was a good opposition for us to practice our combination to get ready for the next round.”, says Teiva.
Check out all results from the VICTOR Oceania Open Individual Championships 2023 on Tournament Software. Photos, videos and more are available to view on Facebook and Instagram. Join the conversation by using the hashtag #VOC23
The tournament continues to unfold from 11am tomorrow morning (local time, GMT+13), opening with the mixed and men’s doubles round of 32.
Courts one and two of the Open Individual Championships will be available to watch on Badminton Oceania’s YouTube Channel.
