Thomas and Uber Cup titles: Chengdu (China), May 5 (SocialNews.XYZ) China’s men’s team regained badminton’s Thomas Cup after a six-year wait after defeating Indonesia 3-1, while the women’s team also regained the Uber Cup for the first time since 2020 after whitewashing Indonesia. 3-0 here on Sunday. This is the first time since 2012 that the same two countries have played each other in both the men’s and women’s finals.
At the Thomas Cup, world No. 2 Shi Yuki got off to a perfect start for China, dominating the first set 21-17 and the second 21-6 against Indonesia’s Anthony Sinisuka Ginting.
Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang made it 2-0 with a 21-18, 17-21, 21-17 win over Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto in the 64-minute doubles match, but Jonathan Christie beat Li Shifeng in 21 to prevent a whitewash for Indonesia. -16, 15-21, 21-17, Xinhua reported. Lee took five points in a row from 18-11 but failed to cut the deficit in the decider against the newly crowned Asian champions.
In the next second doubles, He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu defeated Muhammad Shohibul Fikri and Bagas Maulana 21-11, 21-15 to seal the final win for China.
“I have a lot of responsibility and pressure as the captain, but luckily I got off to a good start,” said Xi. “The team event was a valuable experience, and we met many strong pairs. We were in good form today and feel happy to contribute to the team,” added Liang and Wang.
With the championship sealed, China has now claimed a total of 11 titles at the biennial tournament, trailing Indonesia’s 14.
Thomas and Uber Cup titles: China beat Indonesia in both finals to win the Thomas and Uber Cup titles
In the morning, China’s women’s team defeated Indonesia in three hours to claim its 16th Uber Cup title.
Olympic champion Chen Yufei led the way in singles action as she defeated Gregoria Mariska Tunzung 21-7, 21-16. World No. 1 Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan beat Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti and Rebekah Sugiarto 21-11, 21-8 to give China a 2-0 command in the doubles. In the next second singles, Indonesian teenager Ester Nurumi Tri took the first set 21-10, but He Bingjiao secured the win 21-15, 21-17.
“I’m ready to take on anyone. I’m confident and in pretty good shape,” said Chen Yufei, who didn’t drop a set at the moment of being crowned.
It was also a historic day for the Indonesians, as they helped their team reach the finals for the first time since 2008. “We reached the final after 16 years. It was not easy but we proved our strength,” said Tunjung. “This tournament is ready to better ready for us for the Olympic Games.”
Japan and South Korea shared the Uber Cup bronze medals, while the men’s bronze medals went to Malaysia and Chinese Taipei.