Japan Open: Thais in Third Straight Final
Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Supissara Paewsampran’s mid-season form showed no sign of relenting as they made their third straight final, beating top seeds Feng Yan Zhe/Huang Dong Ping in straight games.
· DEV SUKUMAR
It was an authoritative display by the Thais, whose partnership is just nine months old. In this period they’ve won the full range of HSBC BWF World Tour titles from Super 300 to Super 1000; after winning the Singapore Open and finishing runners-up at the Indonesia Open in May-June, they are now in the final of the DAIHATSU Japan Open 2025.
“This was our third time facing them, with one win and one loss leading up to today,” said Puavaranukroh. “It’s been a back-and-forth battle. We’ve made it a priority to thoroughly understand their strengths and develop strategies to counter them, especially since they’re a team we know we’ll be up against many times in the future. I truly believe that today, we were able to rise above and perform at a higher level than they did.
“In the first half of the second game, we were trailing 11–6. I took a moment to reflect on why we were conceding so many points. That reflection allowed us to regroup and apply what had worked well in the first game. By staying focused and making those adjustments, we were able to turn things around and come out with the win.”