US Open badminton has all-Taiwan men's doubles final
美國羽球公開賽男雙決賽皆是台灣選手
| Taiwan teams square off in championship round, earning gold for the first time in 15 years
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The men's doubles final of the 2025 US Open badminton tournament featured an all-Taiwan final. The championship featured 19-year-olds Lai Po-yu (賴柏佑) and Tsai Fu-cheng (蔡富丞) defeating He Zhi-wei (何志偉) and Huang Jui-hsuan (黃睿璿) by a score of 21-13, 21-23, 21-15. It marked the first time a Taiwanese men's doubles team prevailed in the tournament in 15 years, per CNA. The young duo of Lai and Tsai have been partners since junior high school and were considered a long shot to take the title, as their most recent ranking was 86th in the world. Surprisingly, it was the first time they faced their Taiwanese counterparts, ranked 63rd in the world. After the start of the first game, Lai and Tsai fell behind 3-6 but rallied with eight straight points, leading to a timeout. After a short break, they rattled off another five consecutive points to ensure victory. In the second game, their opponents, He and Huang, fought back, taking the lead 18-13. However, the game would eventually become tied, and they held on for a 23-21 victory. By the crucial third game, Lai and Tsai once again raced out to an early advantage, leading the game 17 to 10, ensuring an early end to the match. Hu Chung-Shien (胡崇賢), coach of the winning team, said his team forced the opponent into high shots. He said returning high shots had a better chance of scoring as the venue was windy and open due to sparse attendance. "Both have a good sense of how to approach the net, but Lai is more consistent and calculated, so the shot-making should be left to him. As for Tsai, he is quick in blocking and has a more powerful return, as they are very complementary," said Hu. The US Open badminton had a total prize money of US$240,000 (NT$7.06 million). The winning duo also received 7,000 points, boosting their world rankings. |
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| Sean Scanlan, Taiwan News, Staff Writer | |
| 2025-06-30 |
