Original title: Temporary partner wins Thailand Open gold medal (title)
Guo Xinwa/Chen Fanghui become Guoyu’s biggest achievement (theme)
China Sports News reporter Zhou Yuan
If you ask who is the “dark horse” of the Thailand Open Badminton Championships that ended last Sunday, the young mixed doubles players Guo Xinwa/Chen Fanghui, who were born in the 2000s and competed together for the first time, must be selected. They became the biggest gain for the Chinese badminton team in this tournament, reversing the top seed, the Thai strong pair Dechapol Puavaranukroh/Sapsiree 2-1 in the mixed doubles final to win the championship, helping the Chinese team win the only championship of this tournament.
The Thailand Open is a Super 500 event of the BWF World Tour. In order to prepare for higher-level competitions and the Paris Olympics, the Chinese team sent a lineup mainly composed of young players. Guo Xinwa and Chen Fanghui are competing together for the first time. Guo Xinwa has never had a fixed partner before. He has paired with Zhang Shuxian, Liu Xuanxuan, and Li Qian, but none of them have achieved outstanding results. Only in last year’s Hong Kong Open, he and Wei Yaxin won the championship podium of the Super 500 tournament for the first time. Chen Fanghui has been paired with Cheng Xing before, but has never won the Super 500 tournament.
The two teamed up for the first time in this competition. In the quarter-finals, they defeated the No. 4 seeds and the world’s 17th-ranked Thai combination Supac/Supisara 2-1 in the quarter-finals. In the semi-finals, they swept the world’s 15th in two straight games. The Indonesian combination Rivaldi/Mentari.
In the final on the 19th, Guo Xinwa/Chen Fanghui’s opponent is even more powerful. They are the 2021 World Championship champions Dechapol/Sapsiree, the former world number one and currently the world’s sixth. They are also the old opponents of the National Badminton Mixed Doubles since the Tokyo cycle. This gold medal is also regarded as the most stable gold medal by the host country, so this game is scheduled to be staged at the finale. At the beginning of the game, the Thai combination followed the script everyone expected and did not give Guo Xinwa/Chen Fanghui too many opportunities. 12 to 21, the Chinese team lost the first game by a big score. “I couldn’t let go at the beginning, and with the headwind, the ball couldn’t go out very well. The opponent kept hitting us, which made us uncomfortable.” Facing a strong opponent in the Super 500 final, Chen Fanghui obviously felt uncomfortable, but she Adjustments were made quickly, “If you calm down later and focus on every point, you will be much better at handling the ball.”
The Chinese team made changes. Starting from the second game, they dared to confront their opponents in front of the net, and continued to put pressure on their opponents in front of the net. They were more patient in taking multiple shots and regained the game 21-12. At the beginning of the decisive game, Guo Xinwa/Chen Fanghui took advantage of the momentum to pursue, leading 10 to 5 at the beginning. When it seemed that they were likely to win the game, the two experienced fluctuations, and their experienced opponents also seized the opportunity to tie the score at 10. “We ourselves didn’t expect that we would take a big lead at the beginning of the third game. After that, the two of us would be a little anxious and use our strength randomly.” Guo Xinwa also made mistakes that young players tend to make. But fortunately, they were working together for the first time and had a good mentality. They quickly regained their normalcy and played at a high level. “The whole person is relatively calm and can give full play to his abilities.” Chen Fanghui said frankly.
The second half of the deciding game was fiercely contested, with many exciting rounds taking place. At one point, the two sides went through a 50-shot contest, and in the end the Chinese team persisted until the end to score a point; at another point, both Guo Xinwa and Chen Fanghui fell to the ground, but they saved the ball tenaciously and finally won the point. “After 11 points, we played more resolutely, not afraid of taking more shots, and disrupted our opponents through changes in methods and ball paths.” Guo Xinwa said when talking about the key to victory.
As temporary partners, they won the Super 500 championship in their first competition together. This has a different meaning for Guo Xinwa/Chen Fanghui. “This championship is an affirmation for us, and it also gives us confidence and motivation.” Guo Xinwa said that after that, they will pair up and compete in four consecutive races, step off the podium, and start everything from scratch. “We need to adjust our mentality and play well in the following games one by one.”
2024-05-21 14:01:18
#Guo #XinwaChen #Fanghui #biggest #achievement #GuoyuSportsChina #Engineering #Network
