BIRMINGHAM: Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia joined an elite list of winners of the All England Open Badminton Championships after coming through in a cracker of a final against defending champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark. Lee won 30-29, 20-22, 21-9 in one hour 14 minutes on Sunday night.
In the match of the tournament -- and one of the best finals of recent times - sixth seed Lee and second seed Axelsen were involved in a titanic duel through the first two games before the effort proved too much for the defending champion, who was in his seventh straight final.
Lee was in his first major final, but he showed no sign of being overawed. Instead, he played at a scintillating pace, his attack unwavering in intensity, and his defence standing up to the task of parrying the incoming missiles. With Axelsen too throwing everything into the contest, what unfolded was an absorbing duel.
Second seed Nozomi Okuhara of Japan reclaimed the women's singles crown that she had last won in 2016, beating Thai challenger Pornpawee Chochuwong 21-12, 21-16 in 44 minutes.
From the opening moments, it was apparent that it would be a tall order for the sixth seed Thai to hurt the Japanese. Nozomi's solidity gave Pornpawee no openings, and the second seed was never threatened. IANS
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