South Korea claims men's team title at Asiad tennis tournament
9/12/2006 12:02
South Korea claimed the men's team title at the 15th Asian Games tennis
tournament following a rain- interrupted final in Doha on Friday. It was the
third time for the South Koreans to win the team title at the Asian Games after
they crowned in Seoul Games in 1986 and Bangkok Games in 1998. The Japanese
started strongly as Japan's veteran Takao Suzuki aced through South Korea's
Chung Hee Seok 2-1 in the first singles match, belting 13 aces against none for
the South Korean. Both 30 years old and having played in the 2002 Asian Games
in Busan, the two battled for 105 minutes before Takao Suzuki destroyed Chung
Hee Seok 6-0, 3-6, 6-3. With one match down, South Korean tennis ace Lee
Hyung Taik, who toppled Thai Paradorn Srichaphan to become the Asian number one
this November, evened the score by stamping his authority in the second singles
match, beating Japan's rising star Go Soeda 6-3, 7-6 comfortably. Although
the 22-year-old Japanese had additional 30 minutes to refresh his mind when the
match was interrupted by a rain break, he still conceded the nail-biting second
set and the whole match after losing the tie break at 8-6. Lee then held on
to partner 20-year-old Jun Woong Sun to beat Japan's Takao Suzuki/Satoshi
Iwabuchi in the doubles match 6-2, 5- 7, 6-2.
Xinhua news
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