Jeong Na-eun-Kim Hye-jeong
Top ranked An Se-young and arch rival Wang Zhiyi respectively steered Korea and China in the final of the Uber Cup badminton championships in Horsens, Denmark.
Korea overcame a stiff resistance from Indonesia, the runners-up two years ago, 3-1 in their semi-finals. China seeking their 17th Uber Cup crown defeated Japan 3-0 in their semi-finals.
It will be a repeat of the 2022 Uber Cup finals, that Korea won 3-2. It will also be the ninth final to see the two teams battling it out for the coveted title.
China won the previous encounters in 1988, 1990, 2002, 2004 and 2016 while the Korean were victorious in 1992, 2010 and 2022.
The first two matches in the final will be crucial for both sides in the final tomorrow.
Zhiyi is one of the rare players to have beaten Se-young at the international arena over the last two years. Earlier this year, Zhiyi defeated Se-young for the prestigious All-England crown but lost to the Korean superstar at the Asian Championships, Indian Open and Malaysian Open earlier this year. Se-young holds a 19-5 career record against the second ranked Zhiyi.
The battle between world number one Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning and the third ranked Baek Ha-na-Lee So-hee is also expected to a close affair although the Chinese pair has beaten the Korean in all the previous three meetings this year.
If the first two matches are shared between the two sides, the final tie is likely to go down the wire.
In the semi-finals, Se-young showed why she is the undisputed queen of badminton with an impressive 21-19, 21-15 win over Indonesian number one Putri Kusuma Wardani 21-19, 21-5.
While Se-young breezed through the opening singles, Korea’s world number doubles pairing of Baek Ha-na-Lee So-hee made heavy weather of their match against Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma-Amalia Cahaya Pratiwi.
The 27th ranked Indonesian duo, who had beaten Ha-na-So-hee at the world championships last year, briefly threatened to repeat the feat.
But Ha-na, who had missed the quarter –finals due to illness, and So-hee overcame a second game lapse to put Korea 2-0 up with a 88-minute 21-16, 19-21, 21-15 win.
On paper world number 19 Sim Yu-jin should have breezed pass her 63rd ranked Thalita Ramadhani Wiryawan. But, the reality on court was the reverse.
The 18-year-old Thalita showed maturity to stun an experienced opponent eight years her senior 21-19, 21-19 to pull the Indonesians back to 1-2 in the tie.
Despite a spirited fight by the Indonesians in the second singles, the Korean scratch pair of Jeong Na-eun-Kim Hye-jeong ensured their sixth final appearance defeating Rachel Allessya Rose-Febi Setianingrum 21-16, 21-18.
Zhiyi, who made her Uber Cup debut in 2020 as an 18-year-old but playing as the top singles for China for the first time was up against three-time world champion Akane Yamaguchi.
Zhiyi kept her winning streak over Yamaguchi, the world number three, that has stretched back to 2023 intact with a hard earned 21-23, 21-11, 21-16 win in the 73-minute first singles.
World number one Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning picked up their third successive win over Yuki Fukushima-Mayu Matsumoto to put China 2-0 up. The Chinese duo upstaged the Japanese pair 21-18, 21-14 in 53-minutes.
It was looking to be a one-way traffic in the second singles as Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Chen Yufei was in uncompromising mood in her match against 19-year-old Tomoka Miyazaki.
Miyazaki, the 2022 world junior champion, was completely outplayed in the first game and seemingly had buckled under the immense pressure. She played a composed game in the second but could not muster what was needed to rattle her opponent.
Yufei battled past the fighting Miyazaki 21-11, 22-20 in just under an hour and put China into yet another final, their 20th in the series.
SEMI-FINAL RESULTS
China beat Japan 3-0 (Wang Zhiyi bt Akane Yamaguchi 21-23, 21-11, 21-16; Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning bt Yuki Fukushima Mayu Matsumoto 21-18, 21-14; Chen Yufei bt Tomoka Miyazaki 21-11, 22-20)
Korea beat Indonesia 3-1 (An Se-young bt Putri Kusuma Wardani 21-19, 21-5; Baek Ha-na-Lee So-hee bt Febriana Dwiouji Kusuma-Amallia Cahaya Pratiwi 21-16, 19-21, 21-15; Sim Ju-yin lost to Thalita Ramadhani Wiryawan 19-21, 19-21; Jeong Na-eun-Kim Hye-jeong bt Rachel Allessya Rose-Febi Setianingrum 21-16, 21-18)
