Hong Kong – 23-year-old Lee Cheuk Yiu sent the crowd into a frenzy at the YONEX-SUNRISE Honk Kong Open 2019 last night, as he won his first major title and became only the second men’s singles player from Honk Kong to win the tournament.
Lee, who had already upset a number of badminton’s best, including Shi Yu Qi and Viktor Axelsen, on his way to the final, faced another tough hurdle in Anthony Ginting. Though he dropped the first game, he stormed back in the second to force a rubber, and fought a tightly contested third game, the crowd exploding on the winning point at 16-21, 21-10, 22-20, after just over an hour.
In men’s doubles, Korean pair Choi Solgyu and Seo Seung Jae also won their first major title, after being taken to three games by Indonesians Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. After losing the first game with just 13 points scored, they were able to completely reverse their momentum, and thus their fortunes, winning 13-21, 21-12, 21-13.
In mixed doubles, Japan’s Arisa Higashino and Yuta Watanabe defeated He Ji Ting and Du Yue of China, 22-20, 21-16, to capture their second title of the year.