4 Chinese badminton players guilty of not playing seriously

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Four Chinese badminton players are on probation for two years for failing to try their best to win a doubles match in 2018. The incident happened in the Fuzhou Open quarterfinals in China in November 2018. World-ranked No. 2 pair Li Jun Hui and Liu Yu Chen were playing No. 17-ranked He Ji Ting and Tan Qiang. Officials intervened in the second game, and play noticeably increased in intensity. He and Tan won in three games but all four players were charged. A disciplinary hearing wasn’t held until November and December 2021. The Badminton World Federation revealed on Friday the panel found the players guilty of failing to use their best efforts. They were each given three-month bans, suspended for two years from Jan. 25. They also had to forfeit their Fuzhou Open prize money.