China ended their campaign in Badminton Asia Championships with three gold, one silver and two bronze medals on the final day in Manila. The world number 16, Wang Zhiyi, won her first singles title at the event against Japanese top seed Akane Yamaguchi.
Wang just turned 22, two days before the competition. In the opening game, it was the world number two Yamaguchi who had the upper hand and took it 21-15. She then hurt her knee in the second, which clearly had an effect on her performance, as Wang won frame 21-13 to level. The Chinese had an 11-point lead at the beginning of the decider, but the reigning world champion fought back to tie things at 19-all with Wang making a lot of mistakes. But the unseeded youngster withstood her opponent's fightback and won two straight points to claim the biggest title of her career 15-21, 21-13, 21-19 in a 78-minute contest.
Earlier in the all-Chinese mixed doubles final, World No. 2 pair Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong beat compatriots Wang Yilyu and Huang Dongping to win the title. After losing the Olympic final in Tokyo, Zheng and Huang fell to their compatriots again at the National Games and at the All England Open. But this time the two-time world champions seized their chances and won the first game 21-17. Wang and Huang maintained their momentum in the second and stormed to victory 21-17, 21-8 to claim their first international title in two years.