Changzhou (China): The badminton China Open saw another surprise in the men’s singles as China’s Weng Hongyang upset Anders Antonsen of Denmark on Friday.
After narrowly defeating Chinese Taipei’s Chou Tien Chen in the second round on Thursday, Weng, world No. 25, continued his impressive run by overcoming fifth seed Antonsen in a thrilling match, securing a comeback victory 19-21, 21-19, 23-21.
Weng will face Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie in the semifinals, who progressed after a convincing 21-18, 21-12 win over China’s Lei Lanxi. Japan’s Kodai Naraoka is set to take on Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand, who beat Anthony Sinisuka Ginting of Indonesia in the other semifinal, marking a tournament where none of the top five seeded men’s singles players advanced to the semifinals.
In the women’s doubles, three Chinese pairs advanced to the semifinals. Li Wenmei/Zhang Shuxian defeated the top-seeded South Korean duo of Baek Ha-na and Lee So-hee with scores of 21-18, 21-18. They will face their compatriots, Olympic champion Jia Yifan and her new partner Zheng Yu. Another Chinese duo, Li Yijing/Luo Xuming, will compete against South Korea’s Jeong Na-eun and Kim Hye-jeong.
In mixed doubles, China’s Feng Yanzhe/Huang Dongping cruised past Denmark’s Jesper Toft and Amalie Magelund 21-10, 21-10 in just 33 minutes. They will face Indonesia’s Dejan Ferdinansyah
and Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja, who secured a comfortable victory over Malaysia’s Hoo Pang Ron
and Cheng Su Yin.
Elsewhere, China’s men’s doubles pair He Jiting/Ren Xiangyu, women’s singles seeds Wang Zhiyi, and Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi and Aya Ohori all advanced.
