[Asian Games] Badminton Lee Sohee - Baek Hana, Women's Doubles Silver Medal

0-2 Defeat to China

Badminton players Lee So-hee (29, Incheon International Airport) and Baek Ha-na (23, MG Saemaeul Geumgo) won the silver medal in the women's doubles at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games.

World No. 2 Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na lost 0-2 (18-21, 17-21) to world No. 1 Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan (China) in the final held on the 7th at Binjiang Gymnasium in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

This medal is the first Asian Games women's doubles medal for Korean players in 13 years since the bronze medals won by Lee Hyo-jung-Kim Min-jung and Lee Kyung-won-Ha Jung-eun at the 2010 Guangzhou Games. It is also the first time in 21 years that Korean players have reached the final since Ra Kyung-min and Lee Kyung-won won the championship at the 2002 Busan Games.

Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na led until the middle of the first set but eventually lost after being overtaken.

The Korean team started strong, with Lee So-hee briefly leaving the court to change her racket during a 1-0 rally and scoring a point. Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na continuously delivered sharp smashes, while Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan made several unforced errors, allowing the score gap to widen to 10-4.

However, after the interval at 11-6, Lee So-hee and Baek Ha-na were chased down to within one point by the revived Chinese attack, and due to an unlucky net shot from the opponents, the score was tied at 12-12. At 18-18, a Korean receiving error and a Chinese attacking point alternated, allowing Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan to reach 20 points first and take the first set.

In the second set, the Chinese team initially failed to manage unforced errors but still secured a 10-4 lead. However, after many long rallies, they conceded points and were caught up to 10-8. At 11-10, Baek Ha-na’s misjudgment of an in/out call allowed the score to be tied, and soon after, Lee So-hee’s under clear shot went out of the end line, giving China the lead.

At a tight 16-16, Baek Ha-na’s smash return went out of the sideline, and after being hit by the opponent’s smash attack, the score gap widened to two points. Although the Korean team had a final chance due to a Chinese service fault, they ultimately lost after failing to return the opponent’s drop shot.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.