Badminton: HK's Ng nabs Thailand Masters from Japan's Nishimoto; Yamaguchi takes women's title
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Hong Kong's Ng Ka Long Angus reacts after winning the men's singles final match at the Thailand Masters in Bangkok on Jan 26, 2020.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
BANGKOK (AFP) - Hong Kong shuttler Ng Ka Long snatched the men's Thailand Masters title on Sunday (Jan 26) after a shaky start against Japan's Kenta Nishimoto, whose compatriot Akane Yamaguchi beat South Korea's An Se-young in a hard-fought women's final.
World No. 9 Ng clinched victory after Nishimoto took the first game in a 16-21, 21-13, 21-12 duel.
But mis-steps in the second and third game by the 25-year-old Japanese player allowed Ng to move forward in a decisive victory - coming back swiftly after a five-point low.
His win in the US$150,000 (S$203,000) tournament is his first in a long time - Ng's last victory was at the Malaysia Masters in 2017 and the Hong Kong Open the year before.
Another rivalry came to a head in the women's singles final when Japan's Akane Yamaguchi conquered her teenage opponent An Se-young in two games.
The 17-year-old Korean, voted Most Promising Player of 2019, had previously beaten world No. 3 Yamaguchi in November at the Korea Masters.
But this time the top seed continued her impressive and fierce performance from the day before - when she battled Spain's Carolina Marin on Saturday for the spot in the finals.
Yamaguchi went point-for-point in the second game, the 22-year-old Japanese pulling through with a 21-16, 22-20 victory after an intense rally that had both players diving for the shuttlecock.
In women's doubles, Chinese pair Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan beat Korea's Baek Ha-na and Jung Kyung-eun 17-21, 21-17, 21-15.
Malaysia's Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi claimed victory in the men's doubles after also coming from behind to defeat China's Huang Kaixiang and Liu Cheng 18-21, 21-17, 21-17.
In mixed doubles, English pair Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith overcame Indonesia's Hafiz Faizal and Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja 21-16, 13-21, 21-16.
The Thailand Masters is the second competition this month to not feature men's world No. 1 Kento Momota after the Japanese superstar was injured in a car crash that killed his driver and left him with minor injuries in Kuala Lumpur.
