Denmark Open: Iwanaga/Nakanishi Step Forward for Japan
The emergence of Rin Iwanaga/Kie Nakanishi as one of the world’s best performing women’s pairs has come at a good time for Japanese badminton.
· DIANNE PIERRE & PREM KUMAR
Women’s doubles in the ‘Land of the Rising Sun’ is going through a period of transition following the split of former world No.1s Yuki Fukushima/Sayaka Hirota and the retirement of Wakana Nagahara, who won two world titles with Mayu Matsumoto.
Iwanaga/Nakanishi’s 21-18 21-14 win over Paris 2024 Olympic silver medallists Liu Sheng Shu/Tan Ning in the VICTOR Denmark Open 2024 final cements their second position on the HSBC Race to Finals rankings.
Post-victory, Nakanishi acknowledged their progress over the last 12 months.