General

The magnificent trophy awaiting the new champions (Photo: Badminton Photo)
China back on top in the Thomas Cup
Date: 5/27/2018 1:56 PM
Published by : Alan Raftery
Favourites China overcame a nail biting end to the final and lifted the Thomas Cup once again. Japan most definitely made China sweat all the way with a great fight, resulting in scenes of relief and joy by Chinese players and coaches when the match was secured. 

In recent history, China have been a dominant force in the Thomas Cup. Winning 5 in-a-row since 2004. Although, the last two Thomas Cups have gone elsewhere. With Japan winning in 2014, beating China in a shock 3-0 victory and Denmark being victorious in 2016. China were very hungry to regain the cup coming to Bangkok. And they did just that.

The opening Men’s Singles match was China’s Chen Long taking on Kento Momota of Japan. A repeat of the Asia Championships final just last month. Momota won that final, he was the hero for Japan in their 2014 Thomas Cup campaign, and he was the hero here too. Momota came out with incredible accuracy and intensity, winning the first game against the Olympic Champion 21-9. Chen Long gave it everything in the 2nd game, but it just wasn’t enough, losing 21-18, and Japan taking the initiative in the final.

China needed to regain control of the tie. What better pair to turn to than experienced Men’s Doubles duo Zhang Nan and Liu Cheng. They delivered a perfect response with a solid 21-10, 21-18 win over Takuto Inoue/ Yuki Kaneko.

With the first matches cancelling each other out in terms of the scores. The second Men’s Singles became a pivotal match in determining the champion. It looked promising for Japan, as Kenta Nishimoto had defeated Shi Yuqi last year at Asia Mixed Team Championships, in their only encounter. However, Shi was in no mood to dwell on this and with a disciplined display scored a vital 2 game win, 21-12, 21-17.

Then came the interesting match-up of China’s Li Junhui and Liu Yuchen against a Japanese scratch pair of Yuta Watanabe and Keigo Sonoda. This seemed like quite the risk by the coaches, but it turned out to be a master-stroke. The Japanese pair gelled well, and the match turned into a brilliant spectacle. After two very tight games, the crowd noise escalated as there was nothing between them in the third game. Japan had two match points to make it 2-2 going into the final match. But they squandered them both, only for Li and Liu to sweep in and take the match and secure the 3-1 Thomas Cup victory, causing team mates and coaches to flood the court in celebration. They are back.

Thomas Cup final result:

Kento Momota (JPN) bt Chen Long (CHN) 21-9, 21-18

Zhang Nan/ Liu Cheng (CHN) bt Takuto Inoue/ Yuki Kaneko (JPN) 21-10, 21-18

Shi Yuqi (CHN) bt Kenta Nishimoto (JPN) 21-12, 21-17

Li Junhui/ Liu Yuchen (CHN) bt Yuta Watanabe/ Keigo Sonoda (JPN) 17-21, 21-19, 22-20

Click here for all the results

©badmintoneurope.com. All rights reserved.

Related news
29/03/2024
Europeans ready for quarterfinals in Madrid
European favourites out of the...

27/03/2024
EOC Executive Committee awards 2027 European Games to Istanbul
The European Olympic Committee...

27/03/2024
Madrid Spain Masters day 2: Victories, upsets, and excitement on court.
French siblings sweep to victo...

26/03/2024
A first action-packed day unfolds at the Spain Masters
The Madrid Spain Masters 2024 ...

26/03/2024
Spain Masters begins today with an unexpected withdrawal!
Madrid is buzzing with excitem...

25/03/2024
Lane/ Vendy and Marin, victorious at Swiss Open
The Swiss Open concluded this ...

More news