Tahiti’s Remi Rossi sensationally upset the No.1 and No.3 seeds on his way to the Men’s Singles final in the 2016 Oceania Championships yesterday.
World No.730 Rossi shocked top seed Pit Seng Low (Australia) 21-16 21-18 before fighting past third seed Anthony Joe in three tough games, 13-21 21-17 21-19. Rossi will face another Australian, Ashwant Gobinathan, in the final.
Gobinathan (featured image) had an easier path, beating fellow-Australians Maika Phillips and Nathan Tang in straight games.
There were no upsets in Women’s Singles, with the top two seeds, both from Australia, making the final in contrasting styles. Hsuan-Yu Wendy Chen had the measure of compatriot Jennifer Tam in a 21-8 21-14 result, while second seed Joy Lai struggled to get past Tiffany Ho 20-22 21-14 21-15.
At stake in the Women’s Singles final will be a spot in the Olympics as Oceania’s top ranked player. The two players are in a neck-and-neck race, with Chen currently leading by just 788 points.
Rossi also excelled in Men’s Doubles. Partnering Leo Cucuel, the Tahiti pair surprised No.2 seeds Anthony Joe/Pit Seng Low to make the final against Matthew Chau/Sawan Serasinghe. The Australians’ effort in reaching the final gives them a shot at making the top 50 in Men’s Doubles and qualifying for the Rio Olympics.
Women’s Doubles will see an all-Australian final as top seeds Tiffany Ho/Jennifer Tam thrashed Tahiti’s Miriau Prununosa/Julie Segrestan 21-0 21-11 to set up a clash against Gronya Somerville/Melinda Sun, the latter having beat Tahiti’s Aurelie Boutin/Chloe Segrestan 21-11 21-8.
In Mixed Doubles, top seeds Robin Middleton/Leanne Choo easily made the final past Tahiti’s Leo Cucuel/Aurelie Segrestan, 21-15 21-4, and will meet Australian compatriots Anthony Joe/Joy Lai for the title.
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