Badminton’s world No. 2 Tai Tzu-ying yesterday exacted revenge against Olympic champion Chen Yufei by winning the Thailand Open women’s singles title in a rematch of their final in Tokyo.
The Taiwanese 27-year-old, who lost last year’s Thailand Open final to Spain’s Carolina Marin, got off to a fast start against the Chinese world No. 4 and eventually sealed the win 21-15, 17-21, 21-12.
She sped into a nine-point lead in the first game, but Chen, who was part of a Chinese team narrowly defeated by South Korea in last week’s Uber Cup in Bangkok, clawed her way back to take the second game and force a decider.
Photo: AFP
Tai then quickly opened up a seven-point lead in the final game and rode the momentum to claim victory.
With the win, Tai extended her head-to-head advantage to 16-4 over Chen, to whom she lost in Tokyo in a marathon 81 minutes.
In an interview with the Central News Agency after the match, Tai said that making fewer errors had been key to her victory.
“It was not easy to attack on offense, and Chen Yufei’s defense put a lot of pressure on my running,” Tai said.
“As long as you make fewer mistakes, you will be better at playing, and if you make more mistakes, you will easily lose the game,” Tai said.
Tai reeled in seven consecutive points to build a 15-7 advantage in the first game, maintaining a comfortable cushion before clinching the opener 21-15.
In a heavily contested second game, Tai was down 17-10 before capturing six consecutive points to reduce the deficit to 17-16.
However, Chen eventually triumphed 21-17 to force the match into a decisive final game.
In the third game, Tai scored seven consecutive points to build up an 11-4 lead, and, after changing sides, climbed ahead 19-12. She then executed a perfectly timed drop shot to reach championship point.
Staying on the front foot, Tai went into full attack mode, securing the title after sending two consecutive smashes down the line, the second a deke that left a flat-footed Chen on the floor.
The win puts some gloss on what has been a less than stellar season for Tai, who bowed out in the last 16 at the German Open in the middle of March, finished third at the All-England Championships the same month and lost to world No. 1 Akane Yamaguchi at the Uber Cup team tournament last week.
Additional reporting by CNA
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