CAIRO, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- China's Zhang Yixin came from a game down to defeat Japan's top-seeded Saki Matsumoto and win the women's singles title at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Junior Championships in Cairo on Saturday.
Zhang recovered from losing the opening game 9-15 to win the next two 15-10, 15-9 in a hard-fought 47-minute final, securing China's only gold medal in the five individual events.
"I'm extremely happy and excited because this is my first time competing at the World Junior Championships, and I've managed to win the title," Zhang told Xinhua.
"I think getting through this match was indeed very difficult. But I had prepared thoroughly beforehand, and my coach and teammates also gave me a lot of confidence and encouragement," she said.
She approached the final against the top seed as a challenger and remained calm under pressure. "I think it was mainly my mental strength. I had a very strong desire to win this gold medal for the Chinese team," Zhang said.
Matsumoto said she was able to dictate play in the opening game. "But in the second and third games, my opponent started getting used to my shots, and I was the one who made mistakes first. I think that's something I need to work on in the future," she said.
Yin Yiqing of China and Ip Sum Yau of Hong Kong, China shared bronze in women's singles after losing their semifinal matches on Friday.
In the mixed doubles final, Indonesia's Muhammad Luthfi Habibi and Dian Ramadhani Mukti defeated China's Feng Yilang and Li Menghan 17-15, 8-15, 16-14 in a closely contested 50-minute match, leaving the Chinese pair with silver.
Habibi explained that training with senior players had helped refine his playing style, adding that he wants to become a world champion at the senior level and an Olympic champion in the future.
"I think my performance today was fairly good overall, but I didn't make the most of some crucial points toward the end of the match," Li said, adding that Chinese players in all five disciplines had given their all and would continue to improve.
Chinese Taipei's Lee Wei-Ting and Chen Yu-Hsi, along with Indonesia's Raihan Daffa Edsel Pramono and Atresia Naufa Candani, shared the mixed doubles bronze medals.
Indonesia secured its second gold medal in men's singles, where Radithya Bayu Wardhana defeated compatriot Fardhan Rainanda Joe 15-9, 11-15, 15-8 in 47 minutes.
France's Mady Sow and India's Jagsher Singh Khangurra shared bronze in men's singles.
In women's doubles, Malaysia's second-seeded Genevie Lim and Low Zi Yu defeated Japan's Nijika Kamata and Shizuku Kashio 15-7, 9-15, 15-12 in a 41-minute final.
China's Shi Sichen and Xiang Yujin, along with South Korea's Choi Ye-da and Kim Min-chae, took bronze in women's doubles.
In the men's doubles final, Chinese Taipei's top-seeded Chen Ping-Hsuan and Lee Wei-Ting defeated Japan's Mahiro Oku and Masato Yamashiro 15-10, 15-9 in just 23 minutes.
Feng and Wei Jianzhen of China shared bronze in men's doubles with Njoto Michaelangelo and Yu Zhirui Jerry of Hong Kong, China.
Indonesia topped the individual-event gold medal standings with two titles, while China, Malaysia and Chinese Taipei claimed one each. China finished with one gold, one silver and three bronze medals, while Japan collected three silvers.
The individual championships followed the world junior team event, which China won earlier this month. ■
