Men’s Final: LIN Yun-Ju (CHN) 4 - 1 FAN Zhendong (CHN) (11-7, 11-4, 8-11, 11-5, 5-0*)
He was the underdog in practically every encounter but Lin Yun-Ju never played like one. The 17-year-old Chinese Taipei paddler won over many fans and served notice that he’s a star on the rise. If the win over Jun Mizutani in the opening round raised eyebrows, he followed up with the big scalp of Ma Long. Against Fan Zhendong in the final, Lin never froze. He simply buckled down and played with the same fearless aggression and breakneck speed, not allowing his opponent to settle down. Controlling the game for the most part, Lin showed maturity to shrug off a Game 3 loss to win the next game to get himself back on winning path. The 5-0 win in the FAST5 was the perfect ending for Lin who’s stirring run netted him his biggest career paycheque.
Lin Yun-Ju: “I’m satisfied with how I performed in the final, I fought hard for every point. I shall continue training hard and hope to keep on doing well.”
Fan Zhendong: “He played outstandingly and I was not able to get going in the first two games. I won’t make excuses for this defeat and it was obvious he was better today, so I will need to go back and work out how to do better.”
