Lee beats Park to win Malaysian Open title
Lee beats Park to win Malaysian Open title
Agence France-Presse, Kuantan, Malaysia
After last year's heartbreak, Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia won the Malaysian Open title when he defeated South Korea's Park Sung Hwan in the final here Sunday.
Doubles pair Choong Tan Fook/Lee Wan Wah made it a double celebration for the host when they defeated Indonesia's Luluk Hadiyanto/Alven Yulianto in the men's doubles final.
The Malaysian pair were in top form in the final as they completely dominated the proceedings to carve out a 15-12, 15-7 win which earned them US$8,640 in prize money.
With the win, the Malaysians ended a barren run dating back to September 1999 when they won their last major title in the international circuit, the German Open.
The win was the first for the Malaysian pair after their three consecutive losses in the finals.
Choong/Lee lost in the final of Hong Kong Open (November 2003), China Open (November 2003) as well as the All England final in Birmingham this March.
"It has been long overdue and we are so happy to have won a title finally," said Lee.
"This will put us in the right frame of mind as we prepare for the Olympics in Athens in August."
In last year's Malaysian Open final, Lee Chong Wei was defeated by Chen Hong of China, a player whom he beat on Saturday's semis to make the final this time around.
The 22-year-old Lee Chong Wei was not about to let history repeat itself as he dominated the first game winning it 15-3.
But he was in trouble in the second with most of his shots going beyond the backline due to the draft and he was trailing 4- 8 at one stage.
However, he found his rhythm and came back strongly in the final stages to snatch victory and with it prize money of $9,600.
"Had the match gone into a third game, I would have lost. It was a very keenly contested final and I guess lady luck was smiling on me," he said.
As for Park, making the final was a good achievement as he had defeated the likes of Lin Dan and Xia Xuanze along the way.
"My concentration was affected when the service judge ruled against me when I was leading 8-4," Park said.
"That affected me as I dare not serve the short backhand serve and Chong Wei capitalized on it."
In the women's singles final, Zhang Ning of China came from a game down to defeat compatriot Zhou Mi 9-11, 11-7, 11-8.
China also took home the women's double title when Gao Ling/Huang Sui defeated fellow countrymen Yang Wei/Zhang Jiewen 15-7, 15-6 to bag $7,320 in prize money.
In the mixed doubles it was China who won the title through Zhang Jun/Gao Ling who defeated Kim Yong Hyun/Lee Hyo Jung of South Korea 15-2, 15-11.
Malaysian Open finals
Men's Singles Lee Chong Wei (Mas) bt Park Sung Hwan (Kor) 15-3, 15-12 Ladies Singles Zhang Ning (Chn) bt Zhou Mi (Chn) 9-11, 11-7, 11-8 Men's Doubles Choong Tan Fook/Lee Wan Wah (Mas) bt Luluk Hadiyanto/Alven Yulianto (Ina) 15-12, 15-7 Ladies Doubles Gao Ling/Huang Sui (Chn) bt Yang wei/Zhang Jiewen (Chn) 15-7, 15- 6 Mixed Doubles Zhang Jun/Gao Ling (Chn) bt Kim Yong Hyun/Lee Hyo Jung (Kor) 15- 2, 15-11