P V Sindhu into the semi-finals
Three former world champions – P.V. Sindhu, Akane Yamaguchi and Nozomi Okuhara – will be in action in the women’s singles competition at the Australian Open badminton champions with each looking for redemption.
Indian veteran Sindhu would be looking to end a seven match losing streak to Japan’s three-time world champion Yamaguchi at the Australian Open badminton championships.
The duo stormed into the women’s singles semi-finals with comprehensive wins over their quarter-final rivals.
Top seeded Yamaguchi, looking win her second title in just over month, defeated India’s 17-year-old teenage sensation Tanvi Sharma 21-14, 21-14 in a match that lasted 32-minutes.
Sindhu was in total control of her 21-6, 21-9 demolition of Chinese Taipei’s Chen Su Yu in just 27-minutes.
While the lanky Indian holds a 15-13 head-to-head record against Yamaguchi, she has not beaten the Japanese star since the BWF World Tour Finals in 2021. In their latest encounter at the Thailand Open, Yamaguchi battled past Sindhu in three grueling games that lasted just over an hour.
Yamaguchi went on to win in Thailand, but in her immediate last two events at in Singapore and Indonesia, she was beaten by Korean ace An Se-young in the finals.
The second semi-finals will see second seeded Pornpawee Chochuwong of Thailand taking on Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara.
The fourth seeded Okuhara, who won the title here in 2017 defeated Taiwanese Lin Hsiang Ti 21-11, 21-10. The 31-year-old former world champion is seeking her second title of the season after the Orleans Masters in March,
Her opponent, is playing in her first semi-finals of the season, defeated eighth seeded Huang Yu-Hsun of Chinese Taipei 21-15, 21-15 in a match that lasted 40-minutes.
Okuhara had defeated Pornpawee in their only meeting in the past three years at the Badminton Asia Championships in early April
Reigning SEA Games champion Alwi Farhan of Indonesia is the sole seeded player in the men’s singles semi-finals.
The 21-year-old third seeded former world junior champion defeated Taiwanese Lee Chia Hao 21-18, 21-15. He will be up against Hong Kong’s Jason Gunawan, who represented Indonesia as junior, in the semi-finals.
Jason battled past China’s Hu Zhean 21-23, 21-18, 21-13 after a 95-minute energy sapping semi-final encounter.
Chinese youngster Dong Tianyao, who had upset top seeded Chou Tien Chen in the second round, continued his fine form to defeat Hong Kong veteran Angus Ng Ka Long 22-20, 21-19.
The 22-year-old will play Moh. Zaki Ubaidillah in the semi-finals. The 18-year-old Zaki, who was beaten by Alwi at the SEA Games, was a comfortable 21-7, 21-13 winner over Malaysian Justin Hoh.
QUARTER-FINAL RESULTS
Men’s singles: Alwi Farhan (Ina) bt Lee Chia Hao (Tpe) 21-18, 21-15; Dong Tian Yao (Chn) bt Angus Ng Ka Long (Hkg) 22-20, 21-19; Moh. Zaki Ubaidillah (Ina) bt Justin Hoh (Mas) 21-7, 21-13; Jason Gunawan (Hkg) bt Hu Zhean (Chn) 21-23, 21-18, 21-13
Men’s doubles: Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang (Chn) bt Kang Min-hyuk-Ki Dong-ju (Kor) 21-19, 21-9; Sabar Karyaman Gutama-Moh Reza Pahlevi Isfahani (Ina) bt Lee Fang-Chih-Lee Fang-Jen (Tpe) 21-17, 21-11; Chen Boyang-Liu Yi (Chn) bt Huang Di-Liu Yang (Chn) 21-7, 21-16; Chen Cheng Kuan-Liu Kuang Heng (Tpe) bt Hariharam Amsakarunan-M.R. Arjun (Ind) 21-19, 16-9 rtd
Women’s singles: Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) bt Tanvi Sharma (Ind) 21-14, 21-14; P.V. Sindhu (Ind) bt Chen Su Yu (Tpe) 21-6, 21-9; Nozomi Okuhara (Jpn) bt Lin Hsiang Ti (Tpe) 21-11, 21-10; Pornpawee Chochuwong (Tha) bt Huang Yu-Hsun (Tpe) 21-15, 21-15
Women’s doubles: Rachel Allessya Rose-Febi Setianingrum (Ina) bt Gabriela Stoeva-Stefani Stoeva (Bul) 21-15, 21-12; Hsu Yin-Hui-Lin Jhih Yun (Tpe) bt Luo Yi-Eang Tingge (Chn) 21-9, 12-21, 21-6; Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma-Meilysa Trias Puspitasari (Ina) bt Low Zi Yu-Noraqilah Maisarah (Mas) 21-13, 21-17; Jia Yifan-Zhang Shuxian (Chn) bt Hsu Ya Ching-Sung Yu-Hsuan (Tpe) 21-13, 18-21, 21-15
Mixed doubles: Ruttanapak Oupthong-Jhenicha Sudjaipraparat (Tha) bt Chan Yin Chak-Ng Tsz Yau (Hkg) 21-15, 21-19; Guo Xinwa-Chen Fanghui (Chn) bt Rehan Naufal Kusharjanto-Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja (Ina) 21-11, 21-14; Presley Smith-Jennie Gai (USA) bt Yang Po-Hsuan-Hu Ling Fang (Tpe) 21-16, 21-11; Feng Yanzhe-Huang Dongping (Chn) bt Akira Koga-Natsu Saito (Jpn) 21-14, 21-18
