Taiwan’s top male singles badminton players yesterday advanced to the third round at the BWF World Championships in Japan after sweeping their opponents.
World No. 4 and fourth-seeded Chou Tien-chen defeated world No. 53 Jason Anthony Ho-shue of Canada in straight games 21-15, 21-12 in 36 minutes.
Chou needed more than an hour to get past 2019 World Championships bronze medalist Sai Praneeth of India in his opening match, but finished better against the Canadian, winning the final four points of the first game and last six points of the second game to hasten his victory.
Photo: AFP
The 32-year-old Taiwanese veteran, who claimed his fourth Taipei Open singles title last month, next faces 14th seed Lee Cheuk Yiu of Hong Kong in the third round for a spot in the quarter-finals.
Taiwan’s world No. 16 Wang Tzu-wei upended world No. 24 Lu Guangzu of China 21-18, 21-16 in a second-round match that ended in less than an hour.
Wang, who defeated Lu for the first time in three tries, would next face world No. 7 Jonatan Christie of Indonesia.
Photo: EPA-EFE
In the women’s singles, Taiwan’s world No. 38 Pai Yu-po lost to Thailand’s world No. 20 Phittayaporn Chaiwan 21-18, 21-13 in 42 minutes.
In men’s doubles, all three Taiwanese pairings advanced to the second round.
Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan beat Ruben Jille and Ties Van Der Lecq of the Netherlands 21-14, 21-17 in a brisk 32 minutes.
Photo: AFP
In the second round, the world No. 40 duo are to face compatriots Lee Yan and Wang Chi-lin, who advanced on a bye.
Meanwhile, world No. 23 Lu Ching-yao and Yang Po-han beat Spain’s Joan Monroy and Carlos Piris 21-11, 21-9, setting them up to face Malaysia’s Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik in the second round.
In mixed doubles, Yang Po-hsuan and Hu Ling-fang, ranked world No. 33, beat Scotland’s Adam Hall and Julie MacPherson 21-13, 21-16 in a quick 25 minutes to advance to the second round, where they are to play France’s Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue.
However, Taiwan’s Lee Yang and Yang Ching-tun lost 21-15, 19-21, 21-8 to Indonesia’s Rinov Rivaldy and Pitha Haningtyas Mentari.
DOMINATION: McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris took the first two spots as Mercedes’ George Russell and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen followed them Australian Oscar Piastri yesterday roared back from season-opening disappointment in his home race by winning the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix from pole position in a McLaren one-two with championship-leading teammate Lando Norris. George Russell finished third for Mercedes, ahead of Red Bull’s reigning champion Max Verstappen with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Saturday’s sprint winner Lewis Hamilton fifth and sixth respectively. Piastri’s win denied Norris a third victory in a row, including last year’s Abu Dhabi season-ender, but left champions McLaren unbeaten in two races so far this year. “Mega job guys. The car was very, very lovely,” Piastri said
TO FINAL FOUR: France had 22 chances and scored two goals, while Croatia could not manage a single shot on target in 120 minutes. Les Bleus won 5-4 on penalties France on Sunday overturned a two-goal deficit to qualify for the UEFA Nations League Final Four by eliminating Croatia 5-4 on penalties after a 2-0 victory in their quarter-final second leg at the Stade de France. Dayot Upamecano scored the winning spot kick in a nail-biting shootout in which France keeper Mike Maignan made two saves, sending Les Bleus into the semi-finals against Spain. Michael Olise opened the scoring and Ousmane Dembele doubled their lead 10 minutes from time to send the tie into extra time after their 2-0 loss in Split, Croatia, on Thursday. France had a total of
BRING THE NOISE: Brazil’s Fonseca attracted a boisterous crowd that brought such dominant soccer-style energy the referee switched to Portuguese to ask for quiet Australia’s Alex de Minaur on Monday put an end to Brazilian talent Joao Fonseca’s challenge at the Miami Open, outlasting the 18-year-old 5-7, 7-5, 6-3 in an enthralling contest. Attendance on stadium court had been sparse throughout the day, but the Hard Rock Stadium turned into a mini-Maracana Stadium for Fonseca’s match, complete with Brazilian flags and soccer-style chanting. Fonseca brought his energetic brand of ultra-attacking tennis, but De Minaur was up to the challenge, coping with blistering forehands and a partisan crowd. Such was the dominance of Fonseca’s raucous support that the referee switched to Portuguese for his appeals for quiet. However, De
The Chicago Bulls on Saturday stunned the Los Angeles Lakers 146-115, spoiling superstar LeBron James’ return from a two-week absence with a groin injury. The NBA’s all-time leading scorer James delivered 17 points, six rebounds and four assists in 31 minutes on court. Luka Doncic, back in action after resting a sore ankle, drilled eight three-pointers on the way to a team-high 34 points, but he ran out of steam in the second half, and no one else stepped up. Austin Reaves, who had also missed action with ankle trouble, scored 25 points. Rui Hachimura, playing limited minutes after missing
RSS