The women's national team, led by head coach Kim Hak-kyun, defeated Taiwan 3-0 in the quarterfinals of the 30th Uber Cup held at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China on the 3rd (Korea Standard Time).
Ahn Se-young and the world's third-ranked Tai Tzu-ying were expected to compete on the day, but the confrontation did not take place as Tai Tzu-ying did not participate.
Ahn Se-young, who played in the first singles of one match, successfully beat Xu by 2-0 (21-14 21-9) to gain the upper hand. In the first doubles of two matches, Baek Ha-na and Lee So-hee defeated Lin Wang-ching and Xu Yia-ching 2-0 (21-6 21-19). In the second singles of three matches, Shim Yu-jin easily beat Song 2-0 (21-5 21-15) to seal Korea's victory.
After the game, coach Kim Hak-kyun said, "The flow was good from the beginning of the game. The flow almost dropped once in the middle, but I think I managed it well with my coaches. It is difficult to revive the team once the flow changes, so we need to focus on this part and prepare well," adding, "I am satisfied with today's game as a whole."
"I'm not in a better condition than usual, but I think I need to take a rest and watch my condition after today's game," coach Kim said of Ahn's condition. "We need to check more on our physical strength as we are preparing for the Olympics," he said. "There are some things other players can do well even without (An) Se-young. Shim Yu-jin also played better than I thought today, so I think I can fill it well with other players."
On his determination to play in the semifinals, Kim said, "We will do our best to advance to the finals with all our might in the semifinals. As the Olympics are just around the corner, I hope all the players are not injured."
The Uber Cup is the most prestigious competition in badminton that takes place every two years. A total of five singles, one doubles, one singles, two singles, and three singles will be played to determine the winner of the best three games. The women's national team, which participated in the Uber Cup as a defending champion, will decide the team that will advance to the final through the semifinal match on April 4.
BY: 토토사이트
