WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPS Finals - Thailand and China 2 Gold Each

Thailand’s juniors took both the first and second gold medals in history for their nation while China duplicated its own double-gold performance from last year. Indonesia came up short three times but participated in the biggest thrills by pushing the home pair to the limit in boys’ doubles.

By Don Hearn. Photos: Don Hearn and BadmintonPhoto.com (archives)

Thailand just couldn’t be satisfied with the one gold it already had in the bag on finals day of the Bimantara Cup or World Junior Championships. The emerging badminton power got started early as Rodjana Chuthabunditkul (pictured) and Maneepong Jongjit put together a three-game victory over Indonesia’s Angga Pratama / Destiara Haris Della, winning 21-19, 14-21, 21-17.

The destination country of the next title, the girls’ singles, may have been a foregone conclusion but the two Thai girls still served up some suspense in their three-game tussle. 14-year-old Ratchanok Intanon took the first game and erased 4 game points by her elder compatriot Porntip Buranaprasertsuk to set up an early match point but she could not convert. The youngster instead had to wait for the deciding game, where she ran away with it to win 21-10 and clinch the title.

Boys’ singles proved disappointing for the Malaysian crowd as Zainuddin Iskandar Zulkarnain (pictured) just couldn’t match China’s Tian Houwei and fell, just as he had in the continental final, again in two games. Another Asian Junior Champion from China, girls’ doubles pair Tang Jinhua / Xia Huan made even quicker working of Indonesians Suci Rizki Andini / Tiara Rosalia Nuraidah, taking less than half an hour to assert their superiority with a 21-9, 21-18 victory.

The longest and closest match saw Malaysia extend its dominance in boys’ doubles as Ow Yao Han / Chooi Kah Ming bested Berry Anggriawan / Muhammad Ulinnuha of Indonesia after almost an hour of action. The pairs split the first two games but in the decider, neither was willing to give an inch until the Indonesias surged ahead to earn four match points at 20-16. Whatever confidence they gained, though, was shaken to its foundations as Ow/Chooi obliterated that advantage with a five-point run which they soon converted to a 23-21 win that ensured the title would stay on the peninsula.

For complete results from the 2009 World Junior Championships, CLICK HERE

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