All England: Wily Lin’s Lesson for Young Aspirant
Six-time champion Lin Dan conjured an escape route from two match points down against Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the opening round of the YONEX All England 2020 today.
· DEV SUKUMAR
That his three-game victory came against a player half his age in possibly his last All England adds to the significance of his achievement.
There was no hint in the early passage of play to suggest such a dramatic turnaround. Vitidsarn knew he had the legs to outlast the older man in the longer exchanges, and with a quick first game win and big leads of 16-10 and 18-13 in the second, he was well on his way.
Lin stayed in the hunt through sheer skill, his whippy half-smashes and difficult angles keeping the pressure on the three-time world junior champion. With Lin steadily closing the gap, Vitidsarn’s desperation to close out the rallies showed. Lin, veteran of many a similar situation, craftily waited to spring the counter-attack, and the suddenness with which that came left the Thai stunned. When Vitidsarn opened up, Lin was ready with the counter. In a flash Lin had the second game, and carrying forward that momentum into the third, he was up 5-0 and 13-4, effectively burying his opponent’s challenge. The match was his on the 63rd minute, 13-21 22-20 21-10.