BADMINTON: FONTAINE Chapman could do little to hide her disappointment after falling to first round proper defeat at the YONEX All England Open Badminton Championships on Wednesday, but she was quick to focus on the positives.
Chapman, who sealed her spot in the main draw following Tuesday’s qualification rounds, faced Hong Kong’s Yip Pui Yin as she looked to progress further at Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena.
But it wasn’t to be for the 27-year-old as Yip triumphed 21-12 21-19, despite a valiant comeback effort from Chapman midway through the second game.
And after seeing her run at the tournament prematurely ended, Chapman was left rueing missed opportunities.
“It was a frustrating match. I felt good going into it, and after yesterday, I had some confidence,” she said.
“I had done some match analysis on her so I felt that I knew what to do and had a good game plan.
“But then I got on court and it didn’t quite work. I think I was waiting for her to do stuff and I wasn’t really dictating.
“I had a much better second game, but there were just a few too many mistakes from me. I didn’t quite find my groove, which was frustrating because I felt like I had a good chance.”
While Chapman’s stint in Birmingham didn’t last as long as she had hoped, attentions now turn to the next few tournaments on her calendar.
For now, her focus is on April’s European Championships, as she looks to continue making her mark on the international scene.
“All England been a great experience, I’ve learnt that I can play in these big arenas and I need to take good confidence from that,” said Chapman.
“It’s frustrating that I’m a little up-and-down and haven’t quite got that consistent performance yet.
“I guess that comes with competing at this level a lot more, which hopefully this season I’m going to be doing.
“I go to the Swiss Open next week and then I’ve got the Polish Open the week after, before the European Individual Championships.
“At the Europeans, for me, I would really like to get to the quarter-finals or semi-finals. Women’s singles is tough, there are a lot of players that are at a very similar level at the moment.
“That is not impossible, but it’s going to be tough so I’ve just got to get my head down now.”
The world’s best badminton players are in Birmingham for the YONEX All England (7-12 March). For tickets, TV schedule results & reaction: allenglandbadminton.com
