PARIS: Victor Lai is the first Canadian to win a Badminton World Championships medal after reaching the men’s semi-finals in Paris on Friday, while champion An Se-young continues to dominate the women’s singles.
Unseeded Lai sprang an upset by defeating South Korea‘s 2021 world champion Loh Kean Yew. The 20-year-old Canadian fell 17-12 behind in the first game but kept his composure to overcome the ninth seed 22-20 21-18 in their quarter-final clash.
“Unbelievable, I’m still shocked,” Lai said.
“I think I got a lot of confidence from the summer, from past tournaments, and it feels good to be the underdog. I don’t have much pressure against the seeded players, so I just go and do my best.”
Lai will face Chinese top seed Shi Yuqi, who needed three games to get past compatriot Weng Hongyang 21-15 7-21 21-10.
There were no surprises in the other two quarter-finals. Defending champion, Thailand’s third seed Kunlavut Vitidsarn, beat Indonesia’s Leonardus Jonatan Christie 21-14 18-21 21-8 to set up a semi-final meeting with second seed Anders Antonsen.
Antonsen, a three-time medallist, defeated Taiwanese sixth seed Chou Tien-chen 21-17 23-21.
“Today, I needed to vent my frustration. It was either that or I broke my racket,” Antonsen said.
“I think all the players are feeling tired at this stage of the tournament. This week could be even longer than usual with six matches on the schedule if we qualify for the final.”
On the women’s side of the draw, reigning world and Olympic champion An is looking unstoppable, after the South Korean world number one eased to a 21-10 21-6 win over compatriot Sim Yu-jin.
An’s semi-final opponent will be Chinese fourth seed Chen Yufei, with the former Olympic gold medallist beating Thai sixth seed Pornpawee Chochuwong 22-20 21-14.
Two-time champion Akane Yamaguchi is also into the semis, with the Japanese fifth seed defeating Chinese third seed Han Yue 21-5 21-19, and will meet Indonesian Putri Kusuma Wardani after her 21-14 13-21 21-16 win over India’s P.V. Sindhu.
“In the first set, I felt my opponent was having a lot of trouble, so I let her make mistakes,” Yamaguchi said.
“In the second set, I had to change my strategy because she had a good counterattack. So, I avoided being too offensive and was more patient, waiting for the right opportunities.” – Reuters
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