Yuta Watanabe and Arisa Higashino suffered a 1-2 (21-18, 15-21, 22-24) defeat against Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping in the mixed doubles semifinals at the Japan Masters 2023 on November 18, 2023, ending their campaign in the top four.
Japanese media reported post-match that while the Japanese pair controlled the first game, they were overwhelmed by the Chinese opponents’ aggressive attacks in the subsequent games. Watanabe and Higashino had expressed strong aspirations to win the title before the match but fell short of their goal. Arisa Higashino expressed regret over the loss, stating, “It’s unfortunate we couldn’t secure the victory.” Yuta Watanabe reflected, “When the pace is slower, I can steadily follow and extend rallies, but with a faster tempo, just two or three shots often decide the match. We apologize to our Japanese fans for not reaching the final and will strive to improve next time.” This article is original content by this site. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited. Site user guidelines: Resist insults. Excellent original submissions and resume submission channel: Currently unavailable.
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