Japan Open: Seung Jae-Won Ho Foil Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin's Bid To Retain Title

KUALA LUMPUR, July 20 (Bernama) -- Professional men’s doubles pair Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani were denied back-to-back Japan Open titles after falling to South Korea’s Kim Won Ho-Seo Seung Jae in the 2025 edition final in Tokyo today.

Playing at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, the world number one Malaysians were outgunned in the opening game, losing 16-21, as they struggled to cope with the Koreans’ aggressive pace and sharp attacks.

Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin then responded strongly in the early stage of the second game, taking a 4-1 lead.

However, their rhythm faltered after the interval, allowing the world number three to claw back and level at 14-14 before slipping behind for the first time at 14-15.

From there, Won Ho-Seung Jae never looked back, sealing victory at 21-17 to claim their fifth title of the year in just 38 minutes.

Won Ho-Seung Jae took home USD70,300 (about RM298,000) as champions while Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin earned USD33,250 (around RM141,000) as the runners-up.

Earlier, Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah stumbled in their bid to become the first Malaysian women’s doubles pair to land the Japan Open title, going down to world number one Liu Sheng Shu-Tan Ning of China, 21-15, 21-14.

Speaking after the match, Sze Fei admitted that their opponents were simply too hot to handle.

“They were very fast. We tried to keep up, but they were just too good,” he said in an audio recording shared by the Badminton World Federation with the media.

Nur Izzuddin, on the other hand, vowed to come back stronger in future tournaments.

Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin will next compete in the China Open 2025, which will run from Tuesday until July 27.

Entering as the defending champions, they are set to begin the Super 1000 tournament campaign against South Korean pair Kang Min Hyuk-Ki Dong Ju.

-- BERNAMA