Lee/Lee prevent Danish-only men’s doubles finals

In the second men’s doubles semi-final of the day, a Danish pair took to the court for the second time: Christian Faust KJÆR and Rasmus KJÆR are battling it out for a place in the final, just as their compatriots Daniel Lundgaard and Mads Vestergaard did earlier.

The two Danes, who are not related despite sharing the same surname, fought their way through the qualifiers to the quarter-finals, where they then progressed directly to the semi-finals thanks to the withdrawal of their scheduled opponents.

Facing them in the quarter-finals are the two Taiwanese players LEE Fang-Chih and LEE Fang-Jen – those two are actually brothers, and even twins. The 29-year-old Lee/Lee pair are seeded sixth in the current tournament and ranked 23rd in the world, a full 20 places ahead of their opponents today, Kjær/Kjær.

The first set already is a thrilling neck-and-neck battle, with neither doubles pair giving an inch. However, the Danes maintain the upper hand for the time being and win the set 21–16. In the second set, the balance of power shifts, and Lee/Lee take the set more dominantly with the result of 21–13.

In the third and decisive set, the score is 11-9 in favor of the Danes at the interval – but neither pair has managed to build up a significant lead so far. And so it continues: point for point, with the gap never exceeding two points for either doubles pair. Towards the end of the set, the tension becomes breathtaking once again: the Danes have three match points, but fail to convert any of them. Lee/Lee keep their nerve, advance to the final with a 23-21 win in the third set, and thus prevent an all-Danish final on the last day of competition.

Pictured: Lee Fang-Chih and Lee Fang-Jen