Sun Yingsha, Wang Manyu, Qian Tianyi and Zhang Rui took up all four spots in the women’s singles semifinals.
Top-ranked Sun came out the winner in a seven-set thriller against Joo Cheon-hui of South Korea. World No. 104 Joo gave her all to drag the match into a decider, where Sun eventually won 11-5, reports Xinhua.
Monaco’s Yang Xiaoxin had a better start to the game with an 11-7 win in the first set, but the fourth-ranked Wang quickly made her response by taking the next four games: 11-7, 11-9, 12-10, 11-2. Sun and Wang will vie for a spot in the final.
Qian won in a similar manner as Wang, recovering from her loss in the first set to dispatch Sofia Polcanova of Austria 8-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-5, 11-6.
Zhang beat 39-year-old German chopper Han Ying 4-1 to book a semifinal clash with Qian.
In the women’s doubles semifinals, Wang Manyu/Sun Yingsha sailed past South Korean duo Shin Yu-bin/Jeon Ji-hee 3-0, while Chen Meng/Wang Yidi defeated Mima Ito/Hina Hayata of Japan 3-1.
Reigning Olympic champion Ma Long got past Germany’s Qiu Dang in straight sets in the men’s singles quarterfinal.
“It was probably the best match that I have played since the Singapore Smash last year. In terms of my form and hits, I performed well on the court, and I felt relatively comfortable today,” commented 34-year-old Ma.
Ma’s semifinal opponent will be Brazilian ace Hugo Calderano, who overwhelmed Quadri Aruna of Nigeria 4-0.
Wang Chuqin saw off compatriot Lin Gaoyuan 4-1, setting up a semifinal encounter with the tournament’s top seed Fan Zhendong, who accounted for Swedish prodigy Truls Moregard 4-2.
Also on Friday, Fan and Wang paired up to emerge victorious 3-1 in the men’s doubles semifinal over Yukiya Uda/Shunsuke Togami of Japan. The Chinese duo will contend for the title with Jang Woo-jin/Lim Jong-hoon of South Korea, who defeated Lin Yun-Ju/Chuang Chih-Yuan of Chinese Taipei 3-1.
–IANS
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