SHAH ALAM: Thai superstar Ratchanok Intanon made it look all too easy as she landed her first women's singles Celcom Axiata Malaysia Open crown when she defeated Tai Tzu Ying of Taiwan in the final today. Her win was a first for Thailand since Pachara Pattabongse last won the title in 1959.
After beating Wang Yihan of China in the semi-finals yesterday, Ratchanok was brimming with confidence and Tzu YIng, who had upstaged Wang Shixian and Saina Nehwal enroute to the final, was simply no match today.
The 21-year-old needed 39 minutes to subdue Tzu Ying in straight sets, winning 21-14, 21-15.
“Naturally, I am very delighted with the victory today, especially when it was my first ever Malaysia Open title. Tzu Ying is very good technically, so I was very well prepared for this final game,” said Ratchanok.
“I knew that I had to be patient for the points and put as much distance as I possibly could between us. I was not even thinking of the title. I was just in the game.”
The win over Tzu Ying was Ratchanok’s eighth in 13 meetings.
For the record, Pachara was a back-to-back winner of the Malaysia Open in 1958 and 1959.
