Ratchanok_Intanon (Photo by Nardisoero)
Still feeling trouble in her right knee, but with that right hand gorgeously caressing the shuttle to various corners, Ratchanok Intanon took her place in the quarterfinals of the Thailand Open 2026.
The world No.7 had hurt herself at the Indonesia Masters in January and said she wasn’t fully fit – then added she preferred not to be 100 per cent as she could let her skill do the talking. And talk it did when needed against rising prospect Thalita Ramadhani Wiryawan, who impressed Intanon with her abilities. The Indonesian was tenacious, but struggled to control the shuttle in difficult conditions, and Intanon had a comfortable passage at the end. The 21-16 19-21 21-15 result gave the No.3 seed a date with Japan’s Hina Akechi.
“I’m still not very fit, and I just do what I have to, 80 or 90 per cent. I don’t expect to be 100 per cent because sometimes when I’m 100 per cent fit, I cannot play with good quality. Sometimes it depends on mentality.
“Sometimes I couldn’t find rhythm, because this the first time I’m playing her, and I wasn’t sure when I should push the pace. Because she tried to play slow, but sometimes, when I pushed faster, she was already waiting for me. So sometimes I had to fight with myself on what I had to do, but I think that win or lose, it’s like training.
“Her technical skills are quite good. I think if she gets stronger, she can be a very good player. I feel she can be good because she already has skill. Sometimes players are strong, but they don’t have technical skills, but she already has the handwork, and if she gets stronger, I believe that she can be better.”
Intanon’s first Thailand Open was, incredibly, 18 years ago. She lost in qualifying at her first Thailand Open in 2008, made the final in 2012, and won it in 2013 and 2017. She made one more final, in 2019. The Nimibutr Stadium is a venue she knows well.
“I’m always happy to play here, even though I play with pressure sometimes, but I’m happy that I can play the quarterfinals this year, that I can play despite the injury. I have to face my condition, so I will take care and I hope it doesn’t get worse.
“If I keep good speed I can control the shuttle in the drift because I believe, with my handwork, I can control the shuttle, but also my game style is attacking, and when you attack, if there’s more speed on the shuttle, we get greater chances to win the point.
“Every year and every day sometimes the wind (direction) changes. I feel I have to face it, and the opponent also has to control and adapt. If you want to be a good player, you have to quickly adapt.”
RESULTS
Men’s Singles
Second Round: Anders Antonsen (Den) bt Yushi Tanaka (Jpn) 21-13, 18-21, 22-20; Shi Yuqi (Chn) bt Lee Cheuk Yiu (Hkg) 21-16, 21-11; Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Tha) bt Lee Chia Hao (Tpe) 21-11, 21-13; Chou Tien Chen (Tpe) bt Diniil Dubovenko (Isr) 21-16, 21-17; Lakshya Sen (Ind) bt Zhu Xuanchen (Chn) 21-12, 21-13; Su Li Yang (Tpe) bt Kidambi Srikanth (Ind) 21-16, 11-21, 21-18; Moh Zaki Ubaidillah (Ina) bt Jeon Hyeok-jin (Kor) 21-13, 21-5; Koki Watanabe (Jpn) bt Kodai Naraoka (Jpn) 21-14, 14-21, 21-15
Men’s Doubles
Second Round: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty (Ind) bt Bryan Jeremy Goonting-Muhammad Haikal (Mas) 21-12, 21-10; Peeratchai Sukphun-Pakkapon Teeraratsakul (Tha) bt Nur Mohd Aziryn Ayub Azriyn-Tan Wee Kiong (Mas) 13-21, 22-20, 21-14; Takumi Nomura-Yuichi Shimogami (Jpn) bt Xie Haonan-Zeng Weihan (Chn) 22-20, 21-15; Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin (Mas) bt Huang Di-Liu Yang (Chn) 21-14, 24-22; He Jiting-Ren Xiangyu (Chn) bt Lee Fang-Chih-Lee Fang-Jen (Tpe) 23-21, 21-19; Christopher Grimley-Matthew Grimley (Sco) bt Chia Weijie-Teo Ee Yi (Mas) 26-24, 21-10; Leo Rolly Carnando-Daniel Marthin (Ina) bt Hu Keyuan-Lin Xiangyi (Chn) 21-16, 21-13; Chen Zhi Ray-Lin Yu Chieh (Tpe) bt Chen Cheng Kuan-Liu Kuang Heng (Tpe) 11-21, 21-19, 22-20
Women’s Singles
Second Round: Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) Busanan Ongbamrungphan (Tha) 21-12, 17-21, 21-17; Ratchanok Intanon (Tha) bt Thalita Ramadhani Wiryawan (Ina) 21-16, 19-21, 21-15; Chen Yufei (Chn) bt Malvika Bansod (Ind) 21-12, 21-7; Pornpawee Chochuwong (Tha) bt Yataweemin Ketklieng (Tha) 21-13, 21-17; Pichamon Opatniputh (Tha) bt Devika Sihag (Ind) 23-21, 21-11; P.V. Sindhu (Ind) bt Amalie Schulz (Den) 21-13, 21-15; Hina Akechi (Jpn) bt Line Hojmark Kjaersfeldt (Den) 21-14, 19-21, 21-14; Tomoka Miyazaki (Jpn) bt Riko Gunji (Jpn) 21-19, 21-17
Women’s Doubles
Second Round: Isyana Syahira Meida-Rinjani Kwinnara (Ina) bt Luo Yi-Wang Ting-ge (Chn) 25-23, 21-13; Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi (Jpn) bt Paula Lopez-Lucia Rodriguez (Esp) 21-17, 21-6; Bao Lijing-Cao Zihan (Chn) bt Hsieh Yi En-Teng Chun Hsun (Tpe) 21-17, 21-17; Lin Chih-Chun-Yang Chu Yun (Tpe) bt Liu Lok Lok-Tsang Hiu Yan (Hkg) 21-17, 18-21, 21-13; Rui Hirokami-Sayaka Hobara (Jpn) bt Kodchaporn Chaichana-Pannawee Polyiam (Tha) 21-7, 21-7; Sayaka Hirota-Ayako Sakuramoto (Jpn) bt Yeung Nga Ting-Yeung Pui Lam (Hkg) 21-14, 21-16; Hu Ling Fang-Jheng Yu Chieh (Tpe) bt Hsu Ya Ching-Sung Yu-Hsuan (Tpe) 21-13, 21-14; Hinata Suzuki-Nao Yamakita (Jpn) bt Chen Fan Shutian-Luo Xumin (Chn) 24-22, 8-21, 21-15
Mixed Doubles:
Second Round: Yuichi Shimogami-Sayaka Hobara (Jpn) bt Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet (Hkg) 17-21, 21-15, 21-18; Cheng Xing-Zhang Chi (Chn) bt Amri Syahnawi-Nita Violina Marwah (Ina) 21-13, 17-21, 21-14; Akira Koga-Natsu Saito (Jpn) by Ruttanapak Oupthong-Jhenica Sudjaipraparat (Tha) 22-24, 21-12, 21-7; Dechapol Puavaranukroh-Supissara Paewsampran (Tha) bt Supak Jomkoh-Ornicha Jongsathapornparn (Tha) 21-14, 21-7; Jafar Hidayatullah-Felisha Alberta Nathaniel Pasaribu (Ina) bt Zhu Yijun-Li Qian (Chn) 21-18, 23-21; Mathias Christiansen-Alexandre Boje (Den) bt Verrell Yustin Mulia-Aisyah Salsabila Putri Pranata (Ina) 21-9, 23-21; Ye Hong Wei-Nicole Gonzales Chan (Tpe) bt Tsai Fu Cheng-Sung Yu-Hsuan (Tpe) 22-20, 21-19; Gao Jiaxuan-Wei Yaxin (Chn) bt Dejan Ferdinansyah-Bernadine Anindya Wardana (Ina) 21-18, 21-12
