PETALING JAYA: Sometimes, all a player needs is a second chance to make things right.
And Taiwan did just that when they trusted Chia Yu-jen again against Denmark, despite his failure to deliver the winning point against South Korea in their earlier Group C tie at the Forum Horsens.
The decision paid off handsomely as Taiwan stunned the hosts 3-2.
With the tie locked at 2-2, world No. 21 Yu-jen nearly let it slip against Ditlev Jaeger Holm after squandering a 20-17 lead in the deciding game and allowing the Dane to edge ahead 21-20.
But in a nerve-wracking finish, the 28-year-old dug deep to seal a dramatic 21-11, 9-21, 27-25 victory, sparking wild celebrations from his teammates.
The win sent Taiwan into the quarter-finals as group champions, while South Korea – the same team that beat them two days earlier and crashed out on countback.
Yu-jen was relieved to make amends.
“I felt so bad after losing the deciding match against South Korea, and this time, I was able to win it for my country,” said Yu-jen.
Earlier, Chou Tien-chen fell to Anders Antonsen 14-21, 21-13, 15-21, but men’s doubles pair Chiu Hsiang-chieh-Wang Chi-lin levelled the tie by beating Daniel Lundgaard-Mads Vestergaard 21-7, 22-20.
Lin Chun-yi then narrowly lost to Magnus Johannesen 17-21, 21-16, 19-21 before Liu Kuang-heng-Yang Po-hsuan kept Taiwan in the contest with a composed 24-22, 21-17 win over Kim Astrup-Mathias Christiansen.
Yu-jen and his teammates will next face India and are bracing for another stern test, as they aim to reach the semi-finals again after their impressive top-four finish in Chengdu, China, in 2024.
