This week has seen a lot of European players leave the courts of the Thailand Masters in Bangkok which left us with only one European representative in the finals. 

England’s Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith had quite the journey in Bangkok this week. On their way to the final they had to play against Russia’s Rodion Alimov/Alina Davletova in the first round, then China’s Ren Xiang Yu/Zhou Chao Min, both of whom they defeated in close two game matches. The quarterfinal seemed to be tougher as they played against Korea’s Choi Solgyu/Shin Seung Chan, however, they won the match in three games: 14-21, 21-10, 21-7. In the semifinal they fought against third-seeded Goh Soon Huat/Lai Shevon Jemie from Malaysia, and after a 74 minutes thriller, they won with a close score of 19-21, 21-19, 24-22. 

Ellis and Smith faced number four seeded Hafiz Faizal/Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja from Indonesia in today’s final. After 64 minutes of play, Ellis/Smith won 21-16, 13-21, 21-16. The two adversaries faced each other once last year, at the DAIHATSU YONEX Japan Open, where the English lost in three games 23-21, 13-21, 13-21.

This win is a big step for Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith as it will serve as a push towards becoming Great Britain’s representatives at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

The women’s doubles displayed a fierce match between number one seeded Chen Qing Chen/Jia Yi Fan (CHN) and unseeded Baek Ha Na/Jung Kyung Eun (KOR). The match lasted 87 minutes and ended in victory for China. Chen Qing Chen/Jia Yi Fan won the match in three games 17-21, 21-17, 21-15.

Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi became the winner of the Thailand Masters in the women's singles, after beating Korea’s An Se Young in straight games 21-16, 24-22, after playing for 50 minutes. To get to the final, Yamaguchi beat the Spanish superstar Carolina Marin, in the semifinal in a 78 minutes thriller. The Japanese star won 14-21, 23-21, 21-18.

The men’s singles was an hour-long match between Hong Kong China’s Ng Ka Long Angus and Japan’s Kenta Nishimoto. In the end, it is Ng Ka Long Angus who gets to take home the gold, after crushing his opponent in three games 16-21, 21-13, 21-12. 

In the men’s doubles, the battle for the top spot was between Malaysia’s Ong Yew Sin/Teo Ee Yi and China’s Huang Kai Xiang/ Liu Cheng. The two adversaries played for 62 minutes, to end the match in a win for Malaysia, 18-21, 21-17, 21-17.

The next event we're looking forward to is the European Men's and Women's Team Championships in Liévin in France. The HSBC BWF World Tour will continue in week eight in Spain. 

To see all results from Princess Sirivannavari Thailand Masters 2020, click here.