Chi Yu Jen
Chinese Taipei defeated Denmark 3-2 as both teams qualified for the quarter-finals of the Thomas Cup. The result between the two sides meant that Korea, who had defeated Sweden 5-0 in their final group match, are out of qualification on a count-back.
Ahead of the ties last night, Denmark only needed one win to progress, and Chinese Taipei needed an outright win. And the match remained highly intense after Anders Antonsen gave Denmark an early 1–0 lead with a 21-14, 13-21, 21-15 victory over Chou Tien Chen.
Had Denmark won the tie, they would not only have advanced but also secured first place in the group, which would have given them a more favorable position in the quarterfinals.
Chinese Taipei responded quickly, leveling the tie at 1–1 through Chiu Hsiang Chieh and Wang Chi-Lin, who defeated Daniel Lundgaard and Mads Vestergaard 21–7, 22–20.
In the second men’s singles, Magnus Johannesen produced a major upset by defeating last month’s All England champion Lin Chun-Yi 17–21, 21–16, 21–19. This result kept Denmark’s hopes of a strong overall result alive.
In the second men’s doubles, Denmark split their usual pair Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen, pairing Astrup with mixed doubles specialist Mathias Christiansen. The Danish pair stayed competitive throughout but lost the key points at the end of each set, with Chinese Taipei taking the match 24–22, 21–17.
This set up a decisive fifth match, where the winner would secure a stronger position going into the quarterfinal draw. Chi Yu Jen, ranked world number 21, faced Denmark’s Ditlev Jæger Holm, ranked number 63. Chi took the first set 21–11, but Holm responded strongly to win the second 21–9.
In a dramatic deciding set, Chi had three match points at 20–17 but could not convert, while Holm later earned five match points of his own without success. Eventually, Chi Yu Jen prevailed 27–25, sealing the tie for Chinese Taipei.
Denmark finishes second in the group.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | MF | MA | MD | GF | GA | GD | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Chinese Taipei | 3 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 5 | +5 | 25 | 13 | +12 | 752 | 648 | +104 | 2 | Advance to quarter-finals |
| 2 |  Denmark | 3 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 5 | +5 | 22 | 14 | +8 | 692 | 632 | +60 | 2 | |
| 3 |  South Korea | 3 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 6 | +3 | 21 | 16 | +5 | 708 | 646 | +62 | 2 | |
| 4 |  Sweden | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 14 | −13 | 3 | 28 | −25 | 406 | 632 | −226 | 0 |
Elsewhere in the Thomas Cup, Sweden lost 5–0 to Korea and exit the tournament with a 2–13 overall match record, though they showed promising signs and picked up a couple of notable wins. England defeated Finland 4–1 in a match where neither team could advance, securing third place in Group B, while Finland finishes fourth.
RESULTS
THOMAS CUP
GROUP B
England beat Finland 4-1 (Harry Huang bt Joakim Oldorff 16-21, 21-12, 21-13; Cholan Kayan lost to Kalle Koljonen 10-21, 10-21; Nadeem Dalvi bt Eliel Melleri 21-16, 21-12; Robin Harper-Harry Wakefield bt Ananda Galvani Daniswara-Alvar Melleri 21-9, 21-13; Alex Green-Zach Russ bt Eliel Melleri-Niilo Nyqvist 21-9, 21-10)
GROUP C
Chinese Taipei beat Denmark 3-2 (Chou Tien Chen lost to Anders Antonsen 14-21, 21-13, 15-21; Chiu Hsiang Chieh-Wang Chi-Lin bt Daniel Lundgaard-Mads Vestergaard 21-7, 22-20; Lin Chun-Yi lost to Magnus Johannesen 17-21, 21-16, 19-21; Liu Kuang Heng-Yang Po-Hsuan bt Kim Astrup-Mathias Christiansen 24-22, 21-17; Chi Yu Jen beat Ditlev Jaeger Holm 21-11, 9-21, 27-25)
Korea beat Sweden 5-0 (Yoo Tae-bin bt Gustav Bjorkler 21-11, 21-14; Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae bt Mio Molin-Max Svensson 21-3, 21-12; Choi Jihoon bt Kim Linell 21-7, 21-17; Song Hyun-cho-Lee Jong-min bt Ludwig Axelsson-Filip Karlborg 21-9, 21-17; Cho Hyeon-woo bt Tim Mork 21-10, 21-12)
