6/25/2006 BRAZILIAN Open

Lee Eun Sil and Moon Hyun Jung of Korea won the Women’s Doubles title at the Brazil Open on Sunday 25th June 2006 in dramatic style.

They beat Japan’s Ai Fujinuma and Sayaka Hirano in final contest where they saved match points in the fifth game before securing victory.

Lee Eun Sil and Moon Hyun Jung won 9-11, 7-11, 8-11, 11-4, 18-16, 11-7, 11-8.

It is the first time that Lee Eun Sil and Moon Hyung Jung have won a Women’s Doubles title on the ITTF Pro Tour as a pair; they are a very new partnership. They have been doubles partners for less than a month and have only competed together in two previous ITTF Pro Tour tournaments, the TMS Chinese Taipei Open and the Volkswagen Open China. On both occasions they lost in the first round.

Titles
Meanwhile, for Moon Hyun Jung it is her first ever title of any description on the ITTF Pro Tour whilst for Lee Eun Sil it is her fifteenth! She has two Women’s Singles titles to her credit and twelve Women’s Doubles title, one of which was gold in the ITTF Pro Tour Grand Finals in Hainan in 2001.

Break from International Play
Following the Olympic Games in 2004, where Lee Eun Sil won silver in the Women’s Doubles with Suk Eun Mi, she departed the international arena, she married and returned to the table tennis scene only three months ago.

“It’s a very good result for them today, they’ve only been practising together for three months”, said Korean coach Jae Hwa Lee. “Individually, both are very strong players and gradually they are developing an understanding as a doubles pair.”

Experience
Lee Eun Sil has vast experience internationally and that experience proved invaluable in São Paulo as the Koreans clawed themselves from the brink of defeat.

“The left hand and right hand combination of the Japanese pair caused Lee Eun Sil and Moon Hyun Jung problems”, explained Jae Hwa Lee; Ai Fujinuma is left handed, whilst Sayaka Hirano is right handed and like the Koreans they are formidable players in their own right. Both were members of the Japanese team that won bronze in the Women’s Team event at the Liebherr World Team Championships in Bremen in April 2006.

Pressure
“As the match progressed, Lee Eun Sil and Moon Hyun Jung blocked the attacks of the Japanese pair better and of course the sixth game was crucial”, explained Jae Hwa Lee. “I think the Japanese girls became nervous and they made errors.”

The Koreans made a bad start with Ai Fujinuma and Sayaka Hirano dominating the first three games. “Lee Eun Sil and Moon Hyun Jung were nervous before the start of the match”, continued Jae Hwa Lee. “However, as the match progressed they gained in confidence.”

Close
Nevertheless it was a close contest to the very end and credit to Ai Fujinuma and Sayaka Hirano but at the end of the day it was Lee Eun Sil and Moon Hyun Jung who were the champions, success in only there third ever ITTF Pro Tour tournament as a Women’s Doubles pair.