Original title: Badminton World Championships | Lost to Thai teenager Kunlawut, Zhao Junpeng won the men’s singles bronze medal
No more surprises. On the 27th, in the semi-finals of the Tokyo badminton men’s singles, China’s only young Zhao Junpeng lost to the Thai genius Kun Lavute and missed the final. However, the second time he participated in the World Championships, he won a bronze medal, and Zhao Junpeng’s performance has been eye-catching.
Zhao Junpeng and Kunla Wute are both sling-type players and are better at defense. Therefore, there were many long and multiple shots in the first game, which was a severe test for the physical fitness of both sides. In the second half of the first round, the score was stalemate. After each long shot, the two of them were already sweaty and needed to come to the sidelines to wipe their sweat. In this way, Zhao Junpeng saved two match points, but at the last moment he mightn’t hold back the extra shots and lost the first game by 20-22.
Such a situation may have had a great impact on Zhao Junpeng’s mentality. At the beginning of the second game, he was in disarray, making frequent mistakes and not scoring a single point. Reluctantly regained a point following being 0-10 behind, but such a huge point difference was irreversible, and Zhao Junpeng lost the game 6-21 in the end.
This is the second time for 26-year-old Zhao Junpeng to compete in the World Championships. Last year, he stopped in the quarterfinals of the World Championships in Huelva, and this year he won the bronze medal in the quarterfinals. The young and mature Kunlawut has gone through many competitions, and his mentality is more calm, and he is more experienced in handling key balls. At the age of 21, he has won the men’s singles championship of the World Youth Championship for three consecutive times (2017-2019), And won the German Open at the beginning of this year. In contrast, Zhao Junpeng’s arsenal has yet to be perfected and needs more experience in competitions.
A loss cannot erase the surprise brought by Zhao Junpeng at the Tokyo World Championships. Ranked only 23rd in the world, he made a surprise victory over Sri Kanter, who was the runner-up of the previous World Championships and ranked 13th in the second round; he eliminated Malaysia’s first brother and No. 5 seed Li Zijia in the round of 16; and then defeated the world ranking. The 18th Indian star Prannoy broke into the semi-finals. Although the World Championships journey has come to an end, he still has a long way to go.
Author: Wu Shu
Edit: Gu Miao
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