KUALA LUMPUR: National singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao has clinched his second World Tour title after winning the 2023 Kuala Lumpur Masters badminton championship today.
He beat Taiwanese Lee Chia Hao 22-20, 21-13 in 43 minutes in the men’s singles final at the Titiwangsa Stadium.
Jun Hao started the first set well to lead 11-6 before emerging victorious in a duel of points against his opponent, ranked 37th in the world.
Lee tried to mount a comeback in the second set, but was let down by his errors in net play, and was unable to stop Jun Hao winning his well-deserved second World Tour title after the Indonesian Masters in Malang in October last year.
“Coming to this tournament I wanted to fight for the title; everyone was hoping for me to win the title here, so for sure the pressure was on me and everything I do,” he said.
Jun Hao was not the only Malaysian to taste success today as national professional mixed doubles pair Chan Peng Soon-Cheah Yee See were crowned champions after beating the Thai pair of Pakkapon Teeraratsakul-Phataimas Muenwong.
The Malaysian pair worked hard for their title, winning the first set 21-9, then losing 17-21 in the second, and finally rising to the occasion and winning 21-10 in the decider, ending their six-year drought after their last title in the Russian Open in 2017.
Unfortunately, national professional men’s doubles pair Low Hang Yee-Ng Eng Cheong failed in their attempt to make it a Malaysian treble when they lost to Taiwanese pair Chen Cheng Kuan-Chen Sheng Fa 21-23, 17-21.