Taipei Open: Yang Po-hsuan/Hu Ling-fang Lose to Japanese Pair, Finish Second; No Taiwanese Champion for First Time Since 2015

Taiwanese mixed doubles pair Yang Po-hsuan and Hu Ling-fang finished as runners-up at the Super 300 Taipei Open badminton tournament on Sunday. They were defeated in the final by Japan's Yuta Takei and Misaki Taguchi with a score of 19-21, 8-21.

This outcome means that for the first time since 2015, the Taipei Open title will not be claimed by a Taiwanese player. The last time a Taiwanese mixed doubles pair won the tournament was in 2005 when Cheng Wen-hsing partnered with American player Wu Jun-ming. Despite several Taiwanese pairs reaching the finals in subsequent years, including Yang and Hu themselves in 2024, they have consistently secured the runner-up position.

The second-seeded Taiwanese duo, ranked 12th in the world, had a strong run to the final, not dropping a single game in their previous four matches. However, they faced the 19th-ranked Japanese pair, whom they had previously lost to at the Asian Championships earlier this year. In the final, Yang and Hu initially led 6-2 in the first game but were unable to maintain their advantage, ultimately losing 19-21. The second game saw them fall 8-21, marking their second runner-up finish at the Taipei Open.