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| Nguyễn Tiến Minh secures the Yonex Waikato International title on Sunday. — File Photo |
Viet Nam News
HÀ NỘI — Nguyễn Tiến Minh came from behind to beat Gao Zhengze 14-21, 21-16, 21-17 to lift the Yonex Waikato International badminton tournament trophy on Sunday in Hamilton, New Zealand.
It was his second title within a week, both at the expense of Gao.
The previous Sunday, he beat the Chinese shuttler 21-13, 21-15 to win the Yonex North Harbour International.
The top seed from Việt Nam had much greater difficulty in Hamilton as Gao exploited his weaknesses and won the first set 21-14 and led 9-4 in the second.
Former world No 5 Minh levelled the scores before going on to win the set 21-16.
His experience helped in the third set as the lead kept changing hands.
Gao was leading 17-16 when Minh sensationally won five points in a row to close out the match.
Minh said it was a lucky win for him but would boost his confidence for the Ciputra Hanoi - Yonex Sunrise Vietnam International Challenge starting on April 9.
In the women’s event, top seed Vũ Thị Trang of Việt Nam lost 16-21, 21-18, 20-22 in the semi-final to China’s Wu Yuqi.
The title was won by Wahng Siqi who beat Wu 18-21, 21-17, 21-13 in the all-Chinese final. — VNS
