Japan defeated Malaysia 3-2 in their final Group 1C match in the Sudirman Cup mixed team championships in Gold Coast, Australia on Wednesday. The defeat left Japan on the top of the group while Malaysia finished second. The other team in the group was Germany who lost both their matches.
Soon after the completion of the group matches the draw for the quarter-finals. The luck of the draw saw Japan and Malaysia drawn again in the quarter-finals on Friday.
In other quarter-final matches Korea will take on Chinese Taipei and Denmark will face Thailand on Thursday. If Malaysia win they face the winners of the China-India quarter-final match in the first-semi-final match on Saturday.
In Wednesday’s group match Japan grabbed a 2-0 lead through Takeshi Kamura-Keigo Sonoda in the men’s doubles and Akane Yamaguchi in the women’s singles.
Kamura-Sonoda came from behind to beat Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong 18-21, 21-17, 21-16 in an hour long match while Yamaguchi outplayed Goh Jin Wei 21-6, 21-17.
World No 1 Lee Chong Wei got Malaysia’s first point when he strolled past Japanese rookie Yu Igarashi 21-8, 21-5 in the men’s singles while Tan Kian Meng-Lai Pei Jing did well for the second point when they prevailed against Yuta Watanabe-Arisa Higashino 21-16, 16-21, 21-19 in the mixed doubles.
Earlier Japan had taken an unassailable 3-1 lead through Olympic champions and world No 1 Misaki Matsutomo-Ayaka Takahashi. The Japanese rode on their experience against Chow Mei Kuan-Lee Meng Yean for a 21-17, 21-18 win in the women’s doubles. – BY RIZAL ABDULLAH
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RESULTS (Wed 24 May)
GROUP 1C
Japan beat Malaysia 3-2
(Japan first)
MD: Takeshi Kamura-Keigo Sonoda beat Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong 18-21, 21-17, 21-16
WS: Akane Yamaguchi beat Goh Jin Wei 21-6, 21-17
MS: Yu Igarashi lost to Lee Chong Wei 8-21, 5-21
WD: Misaki Matsutomo-Ayaka Takahashi beat Chow Mei Kuan-Lee Meng Yean 21-17, 21-18
XD: Yuta Watanabe-Arisa Higashino lost to Tan Kian Meng-Lai Pei Jing 16-21. 21-16, 19-21
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GROUP 1D
Indonesia beat Denmark
(Indonesia first)
XD: Praveen Jordan-Debby Susanto beat Joachim Fischer Nielsen-Christinna Pedersen 21-12, 21-13
MS: Anthony Ginting beat Viktor Axelsen 13-21, 21-17, 21-14
MD: Marcus Fernaldi Gideon-Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo lost to Mathias Boe-Carsten Mogensen 21-16, 22-24, 21-23
WS: Fitriani Fitriani beat Mia Blichfeldt 22-24, 21-15, 21-14
WD: Greysia Polii-Apriyani Rahayi lost to Kamilla Rytter Juhl-Christinna Pedersen 18-21, 21-13, 13-21
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GROUP 2A
Vietnam beat Scotland 4-1
GROUP 2B
USA beat Austria 3-2
