Liu Kuang-heng and Hsu Yin-hui: “We Wanted to Beat Them Even More”
When Liu Kuang-heng and Hsu Yin-hui stepped onto the court for their opening-round match at the Li-Ning China Masters 2026, they knew the spotlight was fully on the pair across the net.
Just two Sundays ago, France’s Thom Gicquel and Delphine Delrue reached the summit of the sport, capturing a historic world title. But on Wednesday, the world No. 48 duo from Chinese Taipei produced a composed, aggressive display to dismantle the newly crowned champions 23-21, 21-10 in just 38 minutes.
“Knowing they had just become world champions, we naturally really wanted to challenge them; we wanted to beat them even more,” Liu said following the victory.
Overcoming the Odds to Claim a Major Scalp
The opening game proved to be the decisive battleground. Trailing 19-17 late in the game, Liu and Hsu refused to fold, fighting back to level the score before saving a game point. They eventually closed out the nerve-shredding frame 23-21.
That opening breakthrough shifted the psychological weight entirely onto the French stars. With confidence surging, the Chinese Taipei pair raced through the second game, giving Gicquel and Delrue no room to breathe.
“The pressure was on them and our mood was good,” Liu explained. “Winning that tight first game allowed us to continue sticking to our style, with even more confidence.”
A Rising Partnership Driven by Detail
Wednesday’s upset was far from a flash in the pan. Liu and Hsu have been steadily climbing the international ranks over the summer, securing the US Open title in late June before finishing as runners-up at the Canada Open the following week.
Hsu attributes their rapid progress to meticulous preparation and on-court synergy rather than any sudden magic formula.
“The main reason is our communication and that we had set up our serves and receives well,” Hsu noted. “We’ve been working on them in training and it’s now showing results. It was our offence today; we did what we were supposed to and executed our game plan well. That gave us the platform to build on early on.”
A Target on the World Champions’ Backs
For Gicquel and Delrue, the early exit serves as an immediate, painful reminder of the realities that come with sitting at the top of the badminton world. As world champions, every pair on the HSBC BWF World Tour will now be hunting for their scalp.
“It wasn’t a good performance,” a candid Gicquel admitted after the match. “The start was okay, but then we got a bit stressed. We forgot to play and make them move.”
