The 2023 Sudirman Cup entered the final day of the group stage. In a battle for the top spot in Group A, China defeated Denmark 5-0 to advance to the knockout round in the first place in the group. In this contest, the men's singles Li Shifeng performed the most excitingly, and the change of pants at the tiebreaker caused a sensation among fans.
After Zheng Siwei/Huang Yaqiong took a 1-0 lead over Thiri/Maeron to help Guoyu 21-9, 21-19, Li Shifeng faced Jemke in the second men's singles match. In this battle, the two fought hard, neither of them wanted to lose points, and they played a full 89 points in just three games, including the longest 56 rounds in the middle of the second game. It is precisely because of this glue, coupled with the sweltering weather in Suzhou, that the team members sweat like rain.
Li Shifeng changed his shorts directly with the help of his coach during the break in the tiebreaker. I saw two coaches holding white towels to form a circle around Li Shifeng, and Li Shifeng took the opportunity to change into soaked shorts and dry new pants. However, due to the "small mistakes" of the coaching staff, Li Shifeng lost some things, which caused a sensation among fans. When changing his pants, coach Sun Jun even signaled the fans not to shoot.
However, changing shorts on the spot is still very rare in badminton matches, and under normal circumstances, athletes only change their tops and rarely change their lower body clothing, which is enough to reflect how fierce the competition between the two sides is. Wearing a new jersey, Li Shifeng won by six points without discomfort, helping Guoyu to lead 2-0, and the final score was 21-15/16-21/21-15.
After winning this tough match, Li Shifeng looked extremely excited, not only did the side flip to celebrate, but also followed the example of his teammates in a "banana New Year" style celebration. Some fans said that Li Shifeng was wearing red clothes, which should not be described as bananas, and it was more appropriate to use "chili pepper to greet the New Year". In addition to Li Shifeng's famous scene, Guoyu's first sister Chen Yufei was also captured selling cute.
I saw Chen Yufei pouting and selling cute during the break in the game, just like the pout-mouthed little yellow duck in the anime. The reason why she was able to relax so much on the court was that the Danish women's singles were not strong, and Chen Yufei won 21-8 and 21-11 to help Guoyu set the way to victory. In the men's doubles, Liu Yuchen/Ou Weiyi were pulled back by their opponents after winning the first set, but they withstood the pressure in the third set and defeated Astrup/Rasmussen 21-14, 19-21, 21-11; Women's doubles Chen Qingchen/Jia Yifan defeated Fleuergold/Thiegson 21-16, 21-14.
In addition to the bustle on the field, the cheering team off the field is also very lively, and every time they get a point, the players who did not play will pick up the cheer sticks, loudspeakers and gongs in their hands to cheer for their teammates.