Odense: Malaysian duo and 2022 men’s doubles world champions, Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, triumphed over their championship drought at the BWF World Tour.
Ranked fourth globally, Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik faced off with Indonesia’s 2022 All England champions, Muhammad Shohibul Fikri and Bagas Maulana, in the Denmark Open final. The Malaysians clinched the title with a straight-set victory of 21-13, 21-17 in just 33 minutes.
Highlights of Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik vs. Muhammad Shohibul Fikri/Bagas Maulana in the 2023 Denmark Open final:
Since their partnership began in 2017, Chia and Soh have reached the finals of BWF World Tour tournaments seven times, including this year’s India Open, Indonesia Open, and China Open. Unfortunately, their journey to the championship title was halted in the previous six finals.
Their persistence paid off on Sunday when, in their seventh finals appearance, they secured their first BWF World Tour championship title, marking their fourth consecutive triumph over Fikri and Maulana.
On Saturday, Chia and Soh staged an impressive comeback to defeat this year’s world championship runners-up, Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen, on their home turf.
In the men’s singles final, Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia, making his second consecutive final appearance at the Denmark Open, faced off with Chinese player Weng Hongyang. After a 34-minute battle, Lee conceded defeat to Weng with a score of 12-21, 6-21.
Interestingly, Lee and Weng are scheduled to cross paths again next week in the first round of the French Open. This presents an opportunity for Lee to seek redemption on French soil.
China emerged as the biggest winner at the Denmark Open, clinching titles in men’s singles, women’s singles, and women’s doubles. Chen Yufei secured the women’s singles title with a 21-14, 21-19 victory over Carolina Marin in 52 minutes.
In a repeat of last year’s mixed doubles final, Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping finally emerged victorious over their senior counterparts and world No. 1 duo, Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong, with a 16-21, 21-15, 26-24 win in a nail-biting 79-minute match.
The women’s doubles crown was claimed by the Chinese pair, Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan, who triumphed over Japan’s Nami Matsuyama and Chiharu Shida with a score of 21-16, 21-13.
