"Korea phobia still lingers; all three Chinese women's doubles pairs fell victim" — Sighs from China... The remarkable surge of Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

The women's doubles pair of Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim (both of Samsung Life Insurance) advanced to the Korea Open final by consecutively defeating Chinese players. Sighs also emerged in China over the successive eliminations of its own players.

Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim, ranked 31st in the world, comprehensively defeated the Chinese pair of Chen Pan Shu Tian and Luo Shu Min (ranked 66th) 2-0 (21-17, 21-11) in the women's doubles semifinal of the 2026 Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Korea Open (Super 500), held on the 7th at Jinnam Gymnasium in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province.

With this, Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim have advanced to the final scheduled for the 8th, securing an opportunity to challenge for the title on home soil.

From the perspective of Chinese women's doubles, Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim were no different from "grim reapers." There was a reason for this. All four Chinese women's doubles pairs advanced to the round of 16 at this Korea Open, but a whopping three of them lost to Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim and were eliminated.

China announced a smooth start as four pairs—Li Yi Jing and Wang Yi Duo, Luo Yi and Wang Ting Ge, Bao Li Jing and Chao Zi Han, and Chen Pan Shu Tian and Luo Shu Min—all made it to the round of 16.

However, the situation changed completely afterward. Chinese women's doubles players collapsed one after another whenever they faced Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim.

It began in the round of 16. Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim defeated the Chinese pair of Luo Yi and Wang Ting Ge 2-0 (21-14, 21-17) to advance to the quarterfinals.

In the quarterfinals, they then secured a thrilling comeback victory against the Li Yi Jing and Wang Yi Duo pair. Although they started nervously by losing the first game 17-21, they dominated the second game 21-8 to level the match.

In the final third game, they won 22-20 after a deuce battle, securing their place in the semifinals.

The elimination streak of Chinese players continued in the semifinals as well. This time, they even toppled Chen Pan Shu Tian and Luo Shu Min, China's last remaining women's doubles pair.

The opponents were no pushovers. Chen Pan Shu Tian and Luo Shu Min had reached the top of the podium at the Malaysia Masters in May and the Arctic Open in October this year, winning two Super 500 tournaments.

In their most recent quarterfinal match, they suppressed the Japanese pair of Iwanaga Rin and Nakanishi Kie (ranked 5th in the world) 2-1 (15-21, 21-12, 21-17), maintaining their upward momentum. However, they could not stop the momentum of Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim.

On this day, Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim were trailing 2-6 in the early stages of the first game, but they scored five consecutive points from a 5-7 deficit to take the lead 10-7. They then maintained their lead to win the first game 21-17.

In the second game, they displayed even more dominant performance. After a tight battle until 6-6, they widened the score gap to reach the interval at 11-7. At 15-11, they scored six consecutive points to put an end to the match with a 21-11 victory. The match lasted only 42 minutes.

Ultimately, three of the four Chinese women's doubles pairs lost to Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim and were eliminated. The remaining pair, Bao Li Jing and Chao Zi Han, withdrew due to injury while facing fellow Chinese players Chen Pan Shu Tian and Luo Shu Min in the round of 16.

Local attention in China also focused on the performance of Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim. The Chinese badminton-focused social media account Hei Wei Fei Chui reported via Weibo on the 7th, "All three Chinese women's doubles pairs fell one after another to Korea's Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim."

It added, "It seems that the 'Korea phobia' of Chinese women's doubles is still continuing," expressing regret over the successive defeats of its own players.

Chinese sports media Zhibo Ba also reported, "Chen Pan Shu Tian and Luo Shu Min lost 0-2 to the Korean pair, failing to advance to the Korea Open women's doubles final."

On the other hand, Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim have achieved a three-game winning streak against Chinese players, leaving only one victory away from the championship.

The two players are a pair that began playing together anew this year. They reached the top of the podium at the Indonesia International Challenge in August and continued their upward momentum by winning the Vietnam Open (Super 100) in September.

This time, they achieved the feat of advancing to a final for the first time at a higher-tier Super 500 tournament.

Kim Yu-jung and Lee Yu-rim's opponents in the final will be the Japanese pair of Hirokami Rui and Hobaraya Sayaka. Hirokami and Hobaraya advanced to the final by defeating the American pair of Lauren Lamb and Allison Li 2-0 (21-14, 21-18) in the semifinals.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original