Jung Kyung-eun, Baek Ha-na claim Denmark Open victory

South Korean badminton players Jung Kyung-eun and Baek Ha-na have won the 2019 Denmark Open. The South Korean duo, No. 45 in the world rankings, won the three matches against the Chinese duo of Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan 9-21, 21-19, 21-15 to take the title at the Denmark Open 2019, held Sunday as part of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Super 750 in Odense, Denmark.

The South Koreans let the Chinese players take the first set 9-21, and were also behind their opponents 5-10 in the beginning of the second set. Yet, they managed to earn points consecutively from 15-18 to 18-18, and won the second set. In the third set, the pair clinched a victory, not giving the Chinese duo a chance to take the lead after 15-15.

This is the second gold medal that the duo comprised of veteran player Jung Kyung-eun and rookie Baek Ha-na has earned at international competitions since they teamed up in May. They won bronze and silver medals in the 2019 Canada Open and the U.S. Open in July, respectively, and grasped a gold medal in the 2019 Hyderabad Open in August.

South Korean badminton players in women’s doubles are going through tough internal competition to snatch a ticket to the 2020 Summer Olympics. While world No. 5 Lee So-hee and Shin Seung-chan, and world No. 8 Kim So-yeong and Kong Hee-yong are the strongest candidates, Jung Kyung-eun and Baek Ha-na, as well as No. 33 Jang Ye-na and Kim Hye-rin are emerging as threatening contenders. According to the rules, for a country to send up to two teams to the Olympics, both teams need to be placed within 8th in the world rankings.


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