China’s Lu Guangzu ends 6-year badminton title drought at Korea Open
The 27-year-old, who beat Taiwan’s Lee Chia-hao, had not won on tour since the Canada Open in 2018
China’s Lu Guangzu won his first title on badminton’s world tour in six years when he beat Taiwan’s Lee Chia-hao in the Korea Open final on Sunday.
The 27-year-old, who is world No 13 and the tournament’s seventh seed, came through a hard-fought tussle 21-16, 20-22, 21-18 to lift his first trophy since the Canada Open in 2018. Lee, the world No 30, was unseeded in Seoul.
Lu had recovered from going a game down to Hong Kong’s Lee Cheuk-yiu in Saturday’s semi-finals, before winning 13-21, 21-19, 21-12.
China’s world No 1 Shi Yuqi was eliminated in the quarter-finals, while Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen, who won his second straight Olympic gold in Paris last month, did not compete.
Axelsen will return to action in Hong Kong next week, when the city’s Open Championships get under way at the Coliseum.
In the women’s tournament, South Korea’s Kim Ga-eun, who was seeded seventh, won by walkover against second-seeded Chinese opponent Wang Zhiyi.
