Vivika Sahajpal
UoN badminton made their return to The National Badminton League with The Headliner at DRSV, kicking off the green and gold’s season with a strong exhibit of skill and determination, as they took on Wycombe Performance on Monday 4th December. Impact’s Vivika Sahajpal reports.
With the first match of the evening, both our Nottingham mixed doubles pair, Harry Goode and Sian Kelly, and the opposing pair from Wycombe were off to a strong start. For the first set, they were moving up the points, neck and neck, with Nottingham managing to take the edge spurring them on to winning the first set.
With the previous wins under their belt, Goode and Kelly went on to win the third set
The second took a similar turn with the service switching between both teams practically every other point. Despite Wycombe’s efforts, this once again led to Nottingham gaining a lead ending in another win for the home side. With the previous wins under their belt, Goode and Kelly went on to win the third set making it a 3-0 win to UoN.
Following a tense mixed doubles game, the women’s singles did not disappoint making for an interesting second match. The game comprised a first set full of impressive drop shots and smash returns from both sides, a tense and exciting second set, and a third demonstrating the perseverance of both players after a tiring match.
Throughout the three sets, Freya Redfern from Wycombe put up a strong fight against Nottingham’s Kirby Ngan. After a series of arduous rallies in which Ngan constantly managed to get the upper hand, the match set ended with a University of Nottingham win of 3-0.
Next up was the men’s singles match which always promises to be a compelling watch and this match was no exception. Set one began with Nottingham’s Johnnie Torjussen and Wycombe’s Dillon Chong starting on a fairly even footing, making their way through the points, alternating who was taking the lead between intense rallies. As Torjussen’s shots became harder to return, Nottingham took the lead, resulting in the first set going to UoN.
The following two sets were a blurred mix of incredible smash shots, impressive manoeuvring and as both players tired, an increase in unforced errors. By maintaining the upper edge throughout, Torjussen skilfully ended the game by winning the following two sets.
The last two matches were the men’s and women’s doubles as both games were captivating in their own right. First up was the women’s doubles with a fairly evenly matched first set that Nottingham’s Sian Kelly and Chloe Dennis just managed to secure.
Our women’s doubles pair persevered […] leading to the fourth 3-0 match win of the night
The second set, once again, was a tussle for the lead with Wycombe even holding it briefly until a couple of strong rallies put Nottingham firmly back ahead. Following this, our women’s doubles pair persevered to a win in the third set leading to the fourth 3-0 match win of the night.
The final match of the night saw three intense sets with the first completely dominated by UoN’s men’s doubles pair Harry Goode and Johnnie Torjussen. The second and third sets were a display of dexterous shots countered by adept returns taking the form of several long rallies. In most, Nottingham managed to prevail giving them their well-earned 3-0 win to the match ending the evening with five 3-0 wins for the green and gold!
Vivika Sahajpal
Featured image courtesy of UoN Sport. Permission to use granted to Impact. No changes were made to this image.
In article image 1 courtesy of @uonsport & @uon_badminton via Instagram. No changes were made to this image.
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