Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee delivered the biggest surprise in defeating match-play specialist Ian Poulter on the first day of the Volvo World Match Play Championship at Kavarna on Thursday.
Thongchai fought back from being two down earlier in his match against last year’s European Ryder Cup winning star to claim the match 3-and-2 with a birdie at the 16th hole on the spectacular Thracian Cliffs course.
“It was a very solid day for me today after the start where I lost a couple of holes with poor concentration,” Thongchai said.
“I had played well in the Pro-Am but then I was very worried when Ian birdied the first three holes.”
Poulter, who had raced to 2-up after three holes, had complained of stomach cramps on the course but refused to dwell on any illness after putting a ball over the cliff top at the fourth hole and then taking a double bogey on 14 before losing the match on 16 to a Thongchai birdie.
“I’m feeling alright,” he said when asked about any illness. “I made a few mistakes and just handed too many holes to Thongchai.”
In the other shock on day one of the 3 million euro (US$3.85 million) event, defending champion Nicolas Colsaerts was beaten 4-and-3 by South African Branden Grace.
“I didn’t think I played that good and that’s just pure and simple,” Colsaerts said.
Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell, and the highest world-ranked player in the field at No. 8, also recorded the biggest victory in defeating England’s Chris Wood five and three.
McDowell, who lost to Colsaerts in last year’s final, was 3-up after eight holes and while he lost the 12th, he closed the match winning the 13th, 14th and 15th holes.
“To get this win under the belt today is very important as it really eases the pressure off me going into tomorrow,” McDowell said.
Shohei Ohtani and his wife arrived in South Korea with his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates yesterday ahead of their season-opening games with the San Diego Padres next week. Ohtani, wearing a black training suit and a cap backwards, was the first Dodgers player who showed up at the arrival gate of Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul. His wife, Mamiko Tanaka, walked several steps behind him. As a crowd of fans, many wearing Dodgers jerseys, shouted his name and cheered slogans, Ohtani briefly waved his hand, but did not say anything before he entered a limousine bus with his wife. Fans held placards
Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals at the All England Open, beating Kim Ga-eun of South Korea 21-17, 21-15. With the win, Tai earned a semi-final against China’s He Bingjiao, who beat Michelle Li of Canada 21-9, 21-9. Defending champion An Se-young defeated India’s P.V. Sindhu 21-19, 21-11. An on Wednesday cruised into the second round, unlike last year’s men’s winner, Li Shifeng, who suffered a shock defeat. South Korea’s An, the world No. 1, overcame Taiwan’s Hsu Wen-chi 21-17, 21-16 to set up the match against Sindhu. In other women’s singles matches, Taiwan’s Sung Shuo-yun lost 21-18, 24-22 against Carolina Marin of
EYEING TOP SPOT: A victory in today’s final against Storm Hunter and Katerina Siniakova would return 38-year-old Hsieh Su-wei to the world No. 1 ranking Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens on Thursday secured a spot in the women’s doubles finals at the BNP Paribas Open after dispatching Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) at Indian Wells. Hsieh and her Belgian partner Mertens, who won the Australian Open in late January, coasted through the first set after breaking their opponents’ serve twice, but found the going tougher in the second. Both pairs could only muster one break point over 12 games, neither of which were converted, leaving the set to be decided by a tiebreaker. Hsieh and Mertens took a 6-3 lead,
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