CHENGDU — China successfully clinched their 16th Uber Cup title as they blew away three-time champions, Indonesia, 3-0, in the final of the 2024 edition at the Chengdu High-Tech Zone Sports Centre, here today.
World number two women’s singles player, Chen Yu Fei pounced the first point as she took 36 minutes to trounce Gregoria Mariska Tunjung, 21-7, 21-16.
The current world top pair, Chen Qing Chen-Jia Yi Fan, then extended the lead for the hosts as they proved to be too hot to handle for scratch pair, Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti-Ribka Sugiarto in 21-11, 21-8.
In the third match, China’s second singles, He Bing Jiao had to dig deep before she eventually prevailed in a strenuous showdown against 21-year-old Ester Nurumi Tri Wardoyo, 10-21, 21-15, 21-17 in 69 minutes and thus brought cheers to the home fans by securing their first Uber Cup trophy since 2020 edition in Aarhus, Denmark.
Despite the loss, Indonesia can take heart from their achievement of reaching the final for the first time since the 2008 edition in Jakarta, when they lost to China, with a similar score.
Speaking after the match, 27-year-old Bing Jiao said she felt proud to help the Chinese team bring back the trophy after they lost to South Korea, 2-3, in the final of the last edition in Bangkok.
Yu Fei, on the other hand, said strong team unity was a key that inspired them to win their fourth Uber Cup title here every time China hosted the tournament since Guangzhou 2002, Wuhan 2012, Kunshan 2016 and Chengdu this year.
Meanwhile, Indonesia’s 21-year-old Ester Nurumi admitted she went down to a much better player even though she had given her best effort to bring Indonesia back into the game.
“It is not easy against Bing Jiao because she is an experienced player. I have discussed with the coach the strategy against her but in the end, it didn’t work. Not our luck today,” she said. — May 5, 2024