Ratchanok loses Indonesia Masters final to top seed Chen

Ratchanok loses Indonesia Masters final to top seed Chen

Ratchanok Intanon rests as she plays against China's Chen Yufei during their women's singles final at Indonesia Masters badminton tournament in Jakarta on Sunday. (AFP photo)
Ratchanok Intanon rests as she plays against China's Chen Yufei during their women's singles final at Indonesia Masters badminton tournament in Jakarta on Sunday. (AFP photo)

Ratchanok Intanon lost to top seed Chen Yufei in badminton's Indonesia Masters final in Jakarta on Sunday.

The Chinese shuttler took one hour and 14 minutes to overcome the fifth-seeded Thai 21-16, 18-21, 21-15 to dash Ratchanok's hopes of winning the event.

Ratchanok was the only Thai player left in the tournament after mixed doubles Supak Jomkhon and Supissara Paewsampran lost to Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue of France 22-20, 21-12 on Saturday.

"I am very pleased to get the gold medal today," world number four Chen said. "I faced some difficulties during the game but I'm very pleased to overcome them and secure the win."

Chen secured a place in the final after defeating compatriot He Bingjiao 21-17, 21-14 in the semis. It was Chen's first title since her gold medal at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

World No.1 Axelsen takes men's title

Danish badminton ace Viktor Axelsen clinched the men's singles title, beating Taiwan's Chou Tien-chen in stra¬¬ight sets.

The world number one beat Chou 21-10, 21-12 in a 41-minute match held at the Istora sporting arena in Jakarta.

"I love playing here in Istora and I always dreamt of winning a tournament at Istora. It's a legendary venue, so to have done that is something that is really special to me," 28-year-old Axelsen told reporters.

Axelsen's victory came after he downed home favourite Anthony Sinisuka Ginting in the semi-finals.

After the Indonesia Masters, the Indonesia Open is set to begin on June 14 and will last until June 19.

The back-to-back tournaments were highly anticipated by badminton fans after almost three years without live audiences in the Indonesian capital due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Do you like the content of this article?
COMMENT