China took the men's, women's and mixed doubles titles, while Shi Yuqi and Chen Yufei clinched the silvers in singles events respectively during the Japan Masters badminton competition on Sunday.
In the men's doubles final, Chinese pair He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu defeated compatriots Liu Yuchen and Ou Xuanyi 21-14, 15-21, 21-15 to win their first championship this year.
In the all-Chinese women's doubles final, Zhang Shuxian and Zheng Yu took a 12-21, 21-12, 21-17 win over the newly crowned French Open champions Liu Shengshu and Tan Ning to win the title. Liu and Tan edged out a Thai pair to clinch the French Open title on October 29.
Chinese pair Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong triumphed in the mixed doubles final with a 25-23, 21-9 win over Feng Yanzhe and Huang Yaping, also from China, to bag their fourth Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour champion of the season.
Viktor Axelsen (L) of Denmark and Shi Yuqi of China celebrate on the podium after their men's singles final during the BWF Japan Masters in Kumamoto, Japan, November 19, 2023. /CFP
Denmark's world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen took the men's singles crown ahead of China's Shi Yuqi, who finished second in the final, which ended 22-20, 21-17.
However, Axelsen has pulled out of the BWF China Masters that runs from November 21 to 26 in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province,
"Unfortunately, I won't be participating in the China Masters this week," said Axelsen via social media.
"Would have loved to play but my foot is simply not ready to play consecutive weeks with many hard matches. I will take a few days to recover and get healthy before I jump on the court again.
"A shame, as I love to play in China but I will come back for the World Tour Finals (December 13-17 in Hangzhou)," added Axelsen.
Gregoria Mariska Tunjung of Indonesia took the women's singles title with a 21-12, 21-12 victory over Chen Yufei of China in the final.
BWF World Tour Japan Masters 2023
Location: Kumamoto, Japan
Date: November 14-19
Prize money: $420,000
Winners:
Men's singles: Viktor Axelsen of Denmark
Women's singles: Gregoria Mariska Tunjung of Indonesia
Men's doubles: He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu of China
Women's doubles: Zhang Shuxian and Zheng Yu of China
Mixed doubles: Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong of China