In a huge upset at the All-England Open, defending champion Lin Dan was stunned in the semi-final by unseeded Chinese player Shi Yuqi. Holding two game points at 20-18 in the first game, the Chinese badminton great couldn’t hold on and crashed to a straight sets 24-22, 21-10 loss, reported PTI.
In the second semi-final, World No 1 Lee Chong Wei was stretched to three games by Chiu Tien Chen of Taiwan, but recovered to register a 10-21, 21-14, 21-9 win to reach his seventh final at the All-England Open. Malaysia’s Lee will now play Shi Yuqi for his fifth title.
However, badminton fans will be disappointed to miss a final showdown between the two veterans, considered to be the greatest players of the game – 33-year-old Lin and the 34-year-old Lee.
The women’s final will see top-seeded Taiwanese Tai Tzu Ying take on Ratchanok Intanon from Thailand. Ratchanok had a tough match where she came back from 12-16 in the first game and 13-15 in the second to beat Akane Yamaguchi, the teenaged sixth seed from Japan, 22-20, 21-16.
The Thai, who has been the youngest world champion and the youngest finalist at the All England, both at the age of 18, has recovered from a spate of injuries and will be gunning for another title.
Tai Tzu Ying, on the other hand, also had a difficult semi, losing the first game 21-11 and being 6-5 down in the second before finding her groove to ovecome Korean Sung Ji-Hyun 11-21, 21-14, 21-14.
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