KUALA LUMPUR (1 JULY 2018): Datuk Lee Chong Wei clinched his 12th Malaysia Open men’s singles title after a close battle with Japan’s Kento Momota during the final day of the Celcom Axiata Malaysia Open 2018 (CAMO2018) at Axiata Arena. Chong Wei required a dramatic match point through a hawk-eye review which perfectly justified the nail-biter of a final.
With the backing of a packed arena, the atmosphere clearly spurred the veteran to a 21-17 23-21 win and snapped Momota’s 21-match winning streak since March.
“It is not easy to win this title 12 times especially with all the young talents rising in the sport. I just gave my all and never gave up especially with the presence of my entire family, wife and kids for the entire tournament which inspired me even more,” he said after the match.
When asked about what was going on his mind when he called for the match point review which sealed the match, he said “I was not a 100% sure about the call but since I had two more challenges, I just tried my luck.”
He added, “I would like to thank all my coaches, teammates and all supporters who put their faith in me. I also hope that in the future there will be someone who can challenge or maybe beat my record in this tournament.”
Meanwhile, in the women’s singles, top seed Tai Tzu Ying was simply too good for World No. 7, He Bingjiao. The 24-year old from Taiwan edged the Chinese youngster 22-20 21-11. This is Tzu Ying’s third Malaysia Open crown.
In the men’s doubles, Japan’s Takeshi Kamura-Keigo Sonoda who were seeded sixth in this tournament eased past fellow countrymen Hiroyuki Endo-Yuta Watanabe 21-8 21-10.
World No.1 women’s pair Chen Qingchen-Jia Yifan of China fell to a 12-21 12-21 defeat at the hands of Japan’s Misaki Matsutomo-Ayaka Takahashi whereas the mixed doubles final saw the battle of two Chinese pairs which ended in a 19-21 18-21 defeat for top ranked pair, Wang Yilyu-Huang Dongping to fourth seeds Zheng Siwei-Huang Yaqiong.
Being one of the five Super 750 level tournaments of the BWF tour this year, the CAMO2018 presented a total prize money of US$700,000 for the winners of the respective categories.
Celcom Axiata Malaysia Open 2018 Finals Results (1 July 2018)
Men’s Singles:
Lee Chong Wei (MAS) bt Kento Momota (JPN) 21-17 23-21
Men’s Doubles:
Takeshi Kamura (JPN)/Keigo Sonoda (JPN) bt Hiroyuki Endo (JPN)/Yuta Watanabe (JPN) 21-8 21-10
Women’s Singles:
Tai Tzu Ying (TPE) bt He Bingjiao (CHN) 22-20 21-11
Women’s Doubles:
Misaki Matsutomo (JPN)/Ayaka Takahashi (JPN) bt Chen Qingchen (CHN)/Jia Yifan (CHN) 21-12 21-12
Mixed Doubles:
Zheng Siwei (CHN)/Huang Yaqiong (CHN) bt Wang Yilyu (CHN)/Huang Dongping (CHN) 21-19 21-18
