BADMINTON/Taiwanese shuttlers take silver in women's doubles at Orléans Masters

Taipei, March 23 (CNA) Taiwanese badminton players Lin Chih-chun (林芷均) and Yang Chu-yun (楊筑芸) finished runners-up in the women's doubles final against a Japanese duo at the Orléans Masters in France on Sunday.

The match against Sumire Nakade and Miyu Takahashi lasted 65 minutes at the Palais des Sports.

In the opening game, the Taiwanese duo lost 20-22 after reaching game point at 20-19, as back-to-back return errors allowed their opponents to reel off three straight points.

Lin and Yang took control in the second game, launching several strong rear-court attacks. Capitalizing on repeated errors by Nakade, the duo leveled the match with a 21-12 win.

In the decisive third game, the Taiwanese got off to a good start, leading 11-9 after a technical timeout, but their Japanese opponents quickly pulled ahead with an aggressive play to seal the match 21-18.

After the tournament, team coach Huang Po-yi (黃博翊) said Lin and Yang had a chance to win the match after leveling the score at 1-1.

"The momentum was on our side, but unfortunately in the third game, after the change of ends, our players hesitated a bit, and their lack of experience showed, while their opponents played each shot decisively," Huang said.

Huang said it was something of a surprise that Lin and Yang had reached the final, given their struggles last week.

"We will continue to test this duo in the future, although it's not certain that they will stay together permanently. It will depend on the team's overall adjustments," he said.

Sunday's silver medal win marked the best performance by Lin and Yang, who have teamed for only three tournaments so far.

The Orléans Masters, held March 17-22, is a Super 300 Series event and the ninth tournament of the 2026 BWF World Tour.