Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
Navigation
Primary Navigation
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular
Secondary Navigation
Australia
China
India
Indonesia
Japan
Malaysia
Philippines
Thailand
Vietnam
Search
Search:
No joy for Lin, Xie at Hong Open badminton finals
AFP - 2 hours 26 minutes ago
HONG KONG (AFP) - - It was a miserable day for China's golden badminton couple, Lin Dan and Xie Xingfang, after they each lost on Sunday in their individual finals at the Yonex-Sunrise Hong Kong Super Series.
Lin, the Beijing Olympics gold medallist and most high profile Chinese player, was beaten 21-9, 9-21, 21-17 by compatriot Chen Jin in the men's final.
He stayed court-side to watch girlfriend and Beijing silver medallist Xie Xingfang lose to Hong Kong's Wang Chen, the home favourite running out 21-16, 10-21, 21-10 winner.
Lin, well known for being feisty, dodged the press after seeing Xie beaten in front of a full house at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium.
"I'm not surprised to beat Lin," said Chen, the third seed, afterwards. "I beat him at the All England Championships earlier this year."
"I think the first game was critical and I won some critical points," he said, adding he believed he still had some way to go to regularly trouble Lin and world number one ranked Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia, who pulled out here with injury.
Lin got off to a dreadful start, surrendering the first game in meek fashion, hitting wide and out to go down 21-9.
But he was a different animal in the second game, surging ahead 7-3 with a devastating overhead smash which left Chen sprawling on the floor.
With the 25-year-old Lin now in full flight, he took the second game 21-9, finishing off with yet another smash to leave his compatriot looking dejected.
Lin prowled around the court during the two-minute interval with the look of a man who couldn't wait to get stuck into his opponent once again, so it was no surprise that he took an early 3-2 lead in the deciding game.
But Chen, 22, enjoying the crowd's support as the perceived underdog, rallied and drew level at 13-13 before pulling away to win the title.
Wang, who at age 32 had previously said this would be her last Hong Kong Open before retirement, also sprang a surprise in beating Xie in a similarly topsy-turvy encounter.
Shanghai-born Wang, unseeded here, was adamant afterwards she would not be back next year to defend her title, although she is yet to announce exactly when she will give up the game.
"I'm definitely not coming back," she said. "I feel close to retirement and each match is one step closer to retirement, so I'm enjoying the games more than before because of that."
A weary-looking Xie said she had not been properly fit since the Olympics. "I've not been training regularly since then," she said, downplaying the effect of playing in front of Wang's home crowd.
"The crowd doesn't affect me that much," she said, pointing out the Hong Kong crowd also gives hearty applause to the mainland Chinese players.
In what is the last date in the 2008 Super Series season, China's mixed doubles of Xie Zhongbo and Zhang Yawen beat South Korea's Lee Yong-Dae and Lee Hyo-Jung, 21-14, 21-16 in the first match of the day.
Later, in the women's doubles, Zhang Yawen and Zhao Tingting of China beat compatriots Cheng Shu and Zhao Yunlei 21-14, 21-13.
In the last of the day's action, the Korean men's pairing of Jung Jae-Sung and Lee Yong-Dae beat Malaysia's Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif and Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari 25-23, 19-21, 22-20.
Email Story
IM Story
Printable View
Blog This
Recommend this article
Average (0 votes)
Sign in to recommend this article »
Most Recommended Stories »
Related Articles: Asia Pacific
Kim inspects air force unit: NKorean mediaAFP - 40 minutes ago
Police: 8 killed in clashes in northwest PakistanAP - 1 hour 8 minutes ago
Horse Racing: El Dorado wins S$1.35m Singapore Gold CupChannel NewsAsia - 1 hour 30 minutes ago
8 Muslims arrested for damaging Dhaka sculptureAP - 1 hour 31 minutes ago
Riots leave 13 dead in Pakistan's port city of KarachiAFP - 1 hour 53 minutes ago
Enlarge Photo
No joy for Lin, Xie at Hong Open badminton finals
Most Popular – Asia Pacific
Viewed
World's oldest person dies at 115 years
Saudi king says 75 dollar oil price 'fair'
Love handles increase death risk: study
Michael Jackson strikes 'amicable' deal with Arab sheikh
At least 381 dead after Nigeria clashes: witness
View Complete List »
Search:
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Top Stories
Most Popular