Taming the hosts
Japan smash away Thailand for first Uber Cup in 37 years
JAPAN are now officially the new powerhouse in women’s badminton after winning the Uber Cup for the first time in 37 years.
Yesterday, Japan gave a solid show to crush Thailand 3-0 in the final that saw 10,000 home fans turning up to support their team.
Unperturbed by the vociferous home crowd, Akane Yamaguchi secured a stunning 21-15, 21-19 win over favourite and former world champion Ratchanok Intanon in the first singles.
The win motivated Japan even further as Yuki Fukushima-Sayaka Hirota and reigning Olympic champion Nozomi Okuhara stayed solid to win their respective matches in straight games to break Thai hearts.
Japan have not won the Cup since their 1981 success.
Head coach Park Joo-bong, a former South Korea doubles specialist who has been with Japan for the last nine years, was beaming with pride.
“When Japan won the Uber Cup in 1981, China had not joined the fray yet. Winning it now in the midst of China and other strong teams is great,” said Joo-bong.
Olympic champion Okuhara, who clinched the winning point, was proud of the team’s success.
“A little pep talk by our coach (Joo-bong) made all the difference today. He told us that Thailand fans will be there in full force but asked us to focus on our game,” said Okuhara.
“That really took our nerves away. Akane played well without any fear and that motivated us. We played our parts in this wonderful victory,” she added.
“We were in the final in 2014 but caved in to pressure but this time, our team spirit saw us through.”
Japan will now shift their attention to the World Championships in China and Asian Games in Indonesia in August and Joo-bong said they would be going for gold medals to justify their status.
Thailand’s high-performance director Rexy Mainaky wore a smile despite the 3-0 collapse.
“Our players could not bring out their best after the hard-fought win over China (on Friday). Reaching the final for the first time is a big boost for us and we will ride on it.”
Losing semi-finalist South Korea and China were the bronze medallists.
A little pep talk by our coach (Joo-bong) made all the difference today.
Nozomi Okuhara