Chinese badminton players clinch two titles at Thailand Open

Chinese badminton players claimed the women's singles and mixed doubles titles at the BWF Thailand Open on Sunday, while Malaysian shuttlers swept both the men's and women's doubles events.

In the women's singles final, China's Chen Yufei won the gold medal with a 21-16, 21-12 straight-games victory over Thailand's Pornpawee Chochuwong in just 48 minutes.

Chen said after the match that, although the week wasn't particularly challenging overall, each round presented unique difficulties – including the final, which still saw her make several unforced errors. The 27-year-old noted that her physical condition has improved since returning to the court, but she is still working to regain her previous speed and aggression.

"My priority now is to improve my ranking to make sure that I have a good draw at each tournament, but I will also balance that with my physical condition to avoid injury," noted World No. 8 Chen.

In the mixed doubles final, Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping defeated compatriots Gao Jiaxuan and Wu Mengying 24-22, 21-16. The first game was tightly contested, but the experienced pair of Feng and Huang prevailed under pressure, before going on to close out the match in the second game. Afterwards, Huang praised the younger duo of Gao and Wu for their strong performance.

"They created immense difficulties for us during the match. They tried their best to challenge us, like we used to do against top players when we were younger," she said.

Malaysia's competitors also delivered a strong showing in the doubles events.

In the women's doubles final, Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan overcame South Korea's Jeong Na-eun and Lee Yeon-woo 21-16, 21-17. In the men's doubles title match, Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik edged Denmark's William Kryger Boe and Christian Faust Kjaer 20-22, 21-17, 21-12 in a hard-fought contest.

The men's singles final saw Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarn thrill the home crowd by defeating Denmark's Anders Antonsen in three games 21-16, 17-21, 21-9.