ENGLISH PAIR CRUSH WORLD AND OLYMPIC CHAMPIONS

by James Skitt - 17.06.09

Badminton doubles pair Nathan Robertson and Anthony Clark secured their first Super Series title in style by defeating World Champions and Olympic Gold medal winners Markis Kido and Hendra Setiawan in the final of the Aviva Singapore Open on Sunday.

The unseeded English National Champions, who also beat third seeds Koo Kien Keat and Tan Boon Heong of Malaysia en route to the final, recored an emphatic 21-12, 21-11 victory in just 26 minutes.

For Robertson and Clark, who have access to a range of English Institute of Sport (EIS) services at Milton Keynes, it is their first international victory since reviving their partnership which won a silver medal at the European Championships in 2004. 

Robertson told the BADMINTON England website: "We just played our best game today. It was close to perfect as I think we made two errors in the whole match. I don't think anyone will underestimate us any more after this. It feels fantastic."

The pair, currently ranked 19th in the world, didn’t drop a game from the quarter final stage onwards, and now head for this week's Indonesian Open in buoyant mood.

Andy Wood, BADMINTON England doubles coach and Olympic Team Manager, said: "Anthony and Nathan's performance here was simply outstanding.

"They improved their level round by round. In the final they outplayed the Olympic champions with a commanding performance. Their forecourt domination and variety in defence at times was unplayable.

"Their challenge now is to make this level of performance their norm and to build from it."

English Institute of Sport (EIS) Service Co-ordinator and Lead on support to Badminton Jo Benham said: “The EIS is fully integrated within Performance Badminton based at the National Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes. This result is only a sign of things to come for Badminton.”

Photography © Getty Images