Gritty Asuncions lose steam

Nathan Robertson and Gail Emms of Europe wore down Kennivic and Kennie Asuncion of Asia last night to escape with a 12-15, 17-14, 15-1 victory in the highlight match of the MVP Cup Asia versus Europe Badminton Championships at the Philsports Arena.

The Asian team, however, had the last laugh when Zhang Ning, the world No. 2, and Lin Dan, the world No. 1, won the last two singles matches, giving Asia an 11-7 points victory, the shiny MVP Cup and the $50,000 that goes with it.

Zhang walked past Yao Jie of the Netherlands, 11-8, 11-0, while Lin staged his final workout for the week in the form of a 15-1, 15-6 win over Anders Boesen of Denmark.

In a match that wasn’t even expected to last long, Robertson and Emms, the world’s No. 1 in mixed doubles, got a big scare when they yielded the first set to the 24th ranked Filipinos who drew all the extra strength they needed from the big, beautiful crowd that cheered them on.

The Asuncions were even more dangerous in the second set where they held match point at 14-13. They came one good shot away from probably one of the biggest upsets in world badminton only to give it away.

Emms thwarted an outright win for the Asuncions when she hit a down-the-line forehand. The top-ranked pair then won the next four points to take the second set and force a deciding third.

In the final set, it was clear who was the better team. The English pair raced to a 12-0 lead and had the luxury to toy with some shots before wrapping up the match on Robertson’s smash that left Kennivic diving and sprawled on the floor.

As the crowd gave the players a standing ovation, Robertson threw his racket into the lower box section, the expensive Carlton racket landing in the hands of a young boy. The Asuncions also gave away shirts and towels to the crowd.

Later in the press conference, Robertson said it was unbelievable how the Asuncions played.

"They were unbelievably tough. They played so well. And we were surprised with the way they played. The crowd also made Kennivic and Kennie play really well. Definitely, they played much better than their world ranking," said Robertson.

Despite their tough stand, Kennie said she was in awe just playing the world’s best.

"Just playing the world number one was already a big thing for me. They were awesome," she said.

Her younger brother, Kennivic, was just as happy, not with the final result, but with the way they played before their cheering countrymen who did waves during breaks, having a great time despite the humidity inside the arena.

The air-conditioner had to be turned off during the match upon the order of the chief umpire to prevent the wind drafts from affecting the shuttle movement.

"They had their game going in the third set. Maybe we became too eager," he said.