Yuqi bags RM692k after crushing Antonsen in King Cup final

KUALA LUMPUR: World No. 1 Shi Yuqi sent the home fans into raptures after pocketing a staggering 1.2 million yuan (RM692,600) by crushing Denmark's Anders Antonsen in the King Cup final on Sunday.

Roared on by a sold-out arena in Shenzhen, the Chinese ace edged a tense first game 22-20 before steamrolling Antonsen 21-7 to seal the lucrative title.

World No. 3 Antonsen failed to defend his crown but still walked away with a handsome 600,000 yuan (RM346,300) for finishing runner-up.

"Thank you to everyone who travelled from far to watch this match," said Yuqi

"I felt an amazing atmosphere, with the crowd cheering and applauding for both athletes.

"These are matches people will remember, and that makes it very worthwhile."

The invitational event is the brainchild of Chinese legend Lin Dan and was launched last year.

Japan's Kento Momota, France's Alex Lanier, Singapore's Jason Teh, Canada's Victor Lai, China's Liu Yang Mingyu and Indonesia's Jonatan Christie also featured in the 3 million yuan (RM1.7 million) tournament.

To put the prize money into perspective, Yuqi took home US$120,000 (RM485,340) after finishing second to Frenchman Christo Popov at the World Tour Finals last week.

That is US$50,000 (RM202,225) less than his winnings at the King Cup.

Popov took home US$240,000 (RM970,680) for his triumph at the season-ending tournament.