CHANGZHOU – Host China claimed two doubles titles as the China Open badminton tournament concluded here on Sunday, while Chou Tien-chen of Chinese Taipei and Akane Yamaguchi of Japan took the men’s and women’s singles crowns respectively.
The mixed doubles final was an all-Chinese showdown, with Guo Xinwa and Chen Fanghui outlasting top seeds and defending champions Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping in a grueling 87-minute battle to seize the title.
Guo and Chen won the first game 25-23, but squandered multiple chances in the second and allowed their opponents to level with a 22-20 comeback. They regrouped to take the decider 21-15.
It was the second Super 1000 title for Guo and Chen since last year’s All England Open. Chen said the pair had been struggling for form coming into the tournament, but their mutual support carried them through to victory.
“We learned to absorb pressure while putting pressure on our opponents, and that’s been the biggest takeaway from this tournament,” Chen said.
In the women’s doubles, Chinese duo Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning defended their crown with a 21-14, 21-19 victory over Japan’s Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto.
The win marked the young home pair’s third Super 1000 title in four such tournaments they have entered this season.
Home favorite Chen Yufei came up short in the women’s singles final, losing to Japanese veteran Akane Yamaguchi 21-18, 21-16 as the world champion showed superior form throughout.
In the men’s singles, Chou Tien-chen, 36, became the oldest Super 1000 winner in history after defeating France’s Toma Junior Popov 21-15, 7-21, 21-13.
Also on Sunday, the men’s doubles title went to Indonesian duo Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri, who downed South Korea’s Kim Won-ho and Seo Seung-jae 16-21, 21-19, 21-19.
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The six-day tournament was held from July 21 to 26 in Changzhou, East China’s Jiangsu province.