China gains revenge with Uber Cup victory

Yu Yang of China (R) holds up the Uber Cup trophy on the podium as her teammates watch, after winning against South Korea in the final round of Uber Cup badminton tournament in Wuhan May 26, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

Wang Yihan of China reacts during her women's singles match against Sung Ji-hyun of South Korea at the final round of the Uber Cup badminton championship in Wuhan, Hubei province May 26, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

Wuhan - China's female badminton team overcame a first-match scare to thrash South Korea 3-0 and reclaim the Uber Cup from the defending champion at the Wuhan Sports Center Gymnasium on Saturday.

After losing the women's team championship title for the first time in 12 years to the Koreans in 2010, China vowed to gain revenge, but it wasn't all smooth sailing for the host side despite the final score line.

Wang Yihan of China returns a shot during her women's singles match against Sung Ji-hyun of South Korea at the final round of the Uber Cup badminton championship in Wuhan, Hubei province May 26, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

World No 1 Wang Yihan dropped the first set the opening final match to Sung Ji-hyun and was well behind in the second. It appeared she had put China's title hopes in jeopardy just as she did when she dropped the first singles in the final in 2010.

However, Wang rallied to claim the second set and thoroughly overwhelmed Sung in the third for a 14-21, 22-20, 21-13 victory.

Wang's fight back inspired her teammates as they went on to rout their Korean opponents.

"If Wang lost the first match, it would be hard to tell what would happen in the following matches," China's head coach, Li Yongbo, said.

Wang said coach Li wept after her performance, but he just laughed that off.

"The fact was she won and made us calm down and play like we are supposed to."

Korean coach Sung Han-kook said the final was lost when Wang came back to win, but praised her daughter's performance despite the third-set meltdown.

"She (Sung) played very well as she is very young. She just lost concentration due to the tenseness of the situation. It's normal for a youngster,"said coach Sung.

The rest of the final became a Chinese procession as Yu Yang and Wang Xiaoli breezed past Kim Jung-min and Ha Jung-na in the doubles before Wang Xin downed Bae Youn-joo in straight sets to seal the title.

It was China's 12th Uber Cup victory in the tournament's 56-year history.

Still, the long-standing powerhouse expects better things to come.

"Our 12-year title-winning streak was broken two years ago. Now, we will start it over again and try to surpass our six-crown run in the coming dozen years," said Li.

sunxiaochen@chinadaily.com.cn