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Asian Games: Japan wins gold in women's team badminton
Japan has won the gold medal in women's team badminton after defeating China 3-1.
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The national flag of Japan (Shutterstock/-)
Japan claimed the gold medal in women's team badminton after overcoming Asian powerhouse China 3-1 in the final at the Istora Gelora Bung Karno on Wednesday.
China began the event with a win after singles shuttler Chen Yufei, ranked fifth in the world, defeated world number two Akane Yamaguchi 21-15, 21-12.
Yamaguchi said she "did not play to her maximum" ability in the loss.
Japan bounced back when world number sevens Yuki Fukushima and Sayaka Hirota crushed their doubles opponents Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan 21-12, 21-17.
The Japan pair's constant attacks were too much for China's defense, forcing them to make a rash of unforced errors throughout the match.
"Just like yesterday [Tuesday semifinals], we tried our best and kept our spirits up during the game," Fukushima said, explaining the reason behind their success.
Singles shuttler Nozomi Okuhara carried on Japan's winning ways in a match against world number seven He Bingjiao. Okuhara led the first game 21-16 but failed to take advantage of He's injured left hand in the second game, losing 21-19 to the left-handed shuttler.
Okuhara, who is ranked one spot lower than He, won the third game 21-15 to clinch the match and give the Japan team a 2-1 lead overall.
World number twos Misaki Matsumoto and Ayaka Takahashi closed out the night by defeating China's Huang Dongping and Zheng Yu 21-16, 21-11. With the victory, Japan secured the gold medal, leaving China with the silver.
Elsewhere on the court, the Indonesia women's team shared third place with Thailand after losing to Japan in the semifinals on Tuesday. (yan)
