Malaysia take unbeatable lead over Cambodia
HIGHER-RANKED Malaysia took an unbeatable 2-0 lead over Cambodia in the opening Group A tie in the 2018 Davis Cup Asia Oceania Group III cycle at the My Dinh Sports Complex indoor arena in Hanoi on Tuesday after taking both the singles rubbers in contrasting styles.
While inexperienced Delton Sophana Kim went down tamely to seasoned Abdul Razak Ahmed Deedat 6-1, 6-2 in the opening singles, Cambodian spearhead Bun Kenny battled all the way before going down to Malaysia’s rising star Christian Didier Chin, who at 17 years of age is nearly 10 years junior to his rival.
Down by a set, Kenny battled back to level and push the contest to a nerve-tingling tie-breaker where after saving a match point, he lost the 164 minute battle 5-7, 6-3, 6-7 (6-8).
Cambodia’s nonplaying captain Tep Rithivit pitched in 19-year-old Sophana Kim for the opening singles against the vastly experienced Deedat, who used his consistency on the serves and ground strokes to complete a 6-1, 6-2 win in an hour 30 minutes.
Getting a high percentage of his first serves in and staying solid on his second deliveries, Deedat controlled the tempo of the contest while the inexperienced Delton struggled to get his rhythm both on his serves and approach, which left him watching his second serves come under a hammer most of the time.
With a 1-0 rubber advantage behind them, Malaysia’s captain Adam Jaya was eagerly watching 17-year-old Didier Chin take on Kenny, who has been pivoting the Kingdom’s campaigns since its spectacular debut in 2012.
Didier Chin created junior grand slam history earlier this year by earning a place in the 64-player main draw for the Australian Junior Open months after the Lawn Tennis Association of Malaysia named him the Player of Year 2017 last November.
With an ITF Junior combined ranking of 44 as of January 1 this year, Didier Chin’s boundless energy ran right into Kenny’s baseline solidity and good court coverage.
The contest was cast in the youth versus experience mould. After taking a 5-3 lead, Kenny blew up three set points to allow Didier Chin to wriggle out. The Cambodian then led 5-4, but again the Malaysian battled back to parity and took the first set after a couple of unforced errors left Kenny in a dark corner.
However, Kenny bounced back by taking the second set after the two players traded several breaks. But it was in the decider that Kenny kept the pressure on his young rival. As both fumbled to hold their nerve and serve often, they stayed grimly to fight a tie breaker where Kenny had a narrow edge until Didier Chin set up the first match point which Kenny saved only to succumb to the second.
Having taken the winning lead, the doubles rubber was inconsequential. Cambodia had named Kenny and Phalkun to fight Deedat and Syed Naguib Syed Agil.