World No. 1 badminton player Tai Tzu-ying of Taiwan yesterday won the women’s singles title at the Indonesia Open in Jakarta, beating No. 5 seed Chen Yufei of China 21-23, 21-15, 21-9.
The victory marked Tai’s 29th consecutive career win and her fifth straight title this year.
After losing the first game, Tai got off to a good start in the second, but was given a tough fight by her Chinese opponent before she was able to power through to a hard-fought 21-15, 21-9 victory in 53 minutes.
Photo courtesy of BadmintonPhoto
Despite her win, the Taiwanese said she was unsatisfied with her performance, having played hastily in the opening game.
“After losing the first game, I told myself that I really need to win this match. I am glad that the crowds are behind me,” she said.
Tai won her first Indonesian Open title in 2016 as an unseeded player. Before clinching the Indonesia Open, the 24-year-old defending champion earlier this month claimed her third Malaysia Open title with a 22-20, 21-11 win over China’s He Bingjiao in just 35 minutes to further consolidate her world No. 1 women’s singles ranking.
In the men’s singles, Japan’s Kento Momota claimed his second Indonesia Open badminton title after defeating first-seeded Viktor Axelsen of Denmark in the tournament’s final.
The 23-year-old started the match with a convincing 11-1 lead up to the interval before closing it 21-14 and 21-9 after several unforced errors by the Dane.
Momota won bronze in the 2015 Indonesia Open, but was slapped with a 12-month ban by the Japan Badminton Association the following year after being caught gambling in an illegal casino.
This is Momota’s biggest title since his comeback last year.
“This victory means so much to me ahead of the World Championship and Asian Games,” he told reporters after the match.
Additional reporting by AFP
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