They have been together for more than 10 years and at CLASH OF CLANS Arctic Open 2025, Ben Lane and Sean Vendy proved their unity is more than just a strength – it’s a weapon.

At the Energia Arena on Sunday, the Englishmen battled through a tense three-game thriller to defeat top seeds Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik 21-18 25-27 21-17, capturing their first Super 500 title, and their third HSBC BWF World Tour crown together. It marks a triumphant return to the podium after Lane’s ankle injury sidelined them for three months until August.

“We’ve played them plenty of times,” Lane said of the Malaysians, “especially over the last few weeks so we knew it was going to be tough. Super happy to come out on top.”

The match was a mental and physical rollercoaster but Vendy credited their poise in pressure moments. “Our change of pace and attack probably won us that match. But it could have gone either way. We just played the big points well.”

When nerves crept in late in the third, Vendy admitted to slipping up, but not for long. Even their opponents acknowledged the world No.15s’ composure.

“They were really consistent with their game play while we made some unforced errors during crucial moments and that caused our loss,” said Chia.

That steadiness – and the deep trust they share – is what defines Lane and Vendy’s combination. Not just partners on court but unwavering supporters of each other.

“On the whole tour, we are probably one of the most together pairs,” Vendy said. “We never give each other a hard time. We always have each other’s backs. We can gee each other up but at the same time calm each other down.”

Now, with their biggest win yet in the bag, the duo look to carry this momentum forward.

Lane summed it up: “It’s the biggest tournament we’ve won so of course we are confident. We are just looking forward to celebrating – wins like this don’t come around every week.”

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WHAT OTHERS SAID

“I value focusing on each rally in front of me, one point at a time, not looking too far ahead and enjoying badminton without worrying about the results.” – Women’s singles winner Akane Yamaguchi

“She played super-fast. Her shot quality is so good, it’s not easy to take points off her. And her deception, I didn’t know where to run! That’s why she’s the world champion.” – Beaten finalist Busanan Ongbamrungphan’s tribute to Yamaguchi

“Every game is a fresh start. You don’t know what’s going to happen next. We just try our best to do our own thing.” – Mixed doubles champion Wei Ya Xin after ending the two-final losing run in Vantaa to Feng Yan Zhe/Huang Dong Ping

“I thought it was going to be ‘Mission Impossible’ because I played three games every round. I was expecting to be empty but God gave me strength to run around the court.” – Chou Tien Chen after his successful men’s singles title defence

“There are times we go in confident, other times we build it up during the match. For this one, we just wanted to feel freer and enjoy each point.” – Thinaah Muralitharan after she and Pearly Tan won their second title of the season