BADMINTON: China claims 11th Sudirman Cup title with 3-0 shutout of Japan

There was every reason to expect Japan to give China a real challenge in the final of the 16th edition of the Sudirman Cup team competition, taking place in Nanning (CHN).

But these Chinese were too strong and swept the final – 3-0 – thanks to singles wins from Yuqi Shi (over no. 1-ranked Kento Momota) and Yufei Chen (over no. 4 Akane Yamaguchi).

In fact, in the three elimination rounds, China was never forced to play its final match, winning 3-1 over Denmark (Viktor Axelsen beat Long Chen in the men’s Singles), 3-0 over Thailand and 3-0 against Japan.

In the history of the Sudirman Cup – originated in 1989 – China has now won 11 titles, including seven of the last eight. For Japan, it’s their second silver medal in the last three tournaments, their highest finishes ever. Summaries:

BWF Sudirman Cup
Nanning (CHN) ~ 19-26 May 2019
(Full results here)

Final Standings: 1. China (Yuqi Shi, Yufei Chen, Junhui Li/Yuchen Liu, Qingchen Chen/Yifan Jia, Siwei Zheng/Yaqiong Huang); 2. Japan; 3. Thailand and Indonesia; 5. Denmark, Korea, Chinese Taipei, Malaysia. Semis: China d. Thailand, 3-0; Japan d. Indonesia, 3-1. Final: China d. Japan, 3-0.