ASIAN GAMES WS Final – Li Xuerui stumbles again

Once again Li Xuerui has been denied a major title while playing this time her compatriot Wang Yihan. The world number three came back from one game down to nothing to clinch the most prestigious Asian title.

By Tarek Hafi, Badzine Correspondent live in Incheon.  Photos: Don Hearn (live)

Former World Champion Wang Yihan (pictured), grabbed another big title to add to her long list of victories. The Shanghai-born player took three games to overcome her compatriot Li Xuerui, two years after losing to Li in the Olympic final.

It was a change of fate that justifies Li Yongbo’s choice to leave Wang Shixian on the bench for the individual event despite being one spot higher than Wang Yihan on the world rankings.

“I, of course, was happy when the coaches choose me to play in the individual event.  I am not really sure of the reason but they probably thought I would do better than Wang Shixian,” replied Wang Yihan in her post-match press conference.  Wang Yihan herself had been similarly passed over and was not even in China’s Guangzhou contingent in 2010, despite being world #2 at the time, 2 spots ahead of the Wang who eventually won gold there.

Still, Li Xuerui (pictured) had the better start in this second final of the individual event, quickly getting on the attack and varying her shots to perfection.  She had an important lead after the opening game, where we could almost foresee the conclusion before Wang Yihan turned the match to her advantage.

Wang grabbed the second game with a little luck at the net, which seemed to stick to her side as she commenced the final game with a significant lead.  In an attempt to turn the tide, Li Xuerui started to stress her efficient drives and offensive clears, but Wang Yihan, known for her perseverance, recovered shuttles from nowhere to eventually stand as a winner.

“I am really happy to have won the gold medal for China, especially since the 1^st of October is the national day in our country, but I also wish to congratulate Li Xuerui because it wasn’t an easy match and she played really well,” said Wang Yihan after the final.

Wang Yihan has now won a collection of titles in Korea, beginning with the World Junior title in Incheon in 2006 just 5 kilometres to the south of here.

“I did win here in 2006 but I have also won other titles here too, so I think not only Incheon but also Korea is a lucky place for me and I am happy for all the medals I’ve won here,” said Wang.

“Before winning this Asian Games gold, I have won other big events like the All England and the World Championships but those are in the past.  Now, when I go back home, I will focus on preparing to win my next titles in the future.”

Wang Yihan, therefore, grabs a second gold medal for China, becoming the Asian Champion for the next four years but with no guarantee that she will be present in Indonesia in 2018, even if she continues to be at the top of the world, as proven here with the case of Wang Shixian.

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