Chan Peng Soon-Peck Yen Wei were no match for Indonesia’s Olympics champions Tontowi Ahmad-Liliyana Natsir in the mixed doubles semi-finals in the USD1 million BCA Indonesia Open Superseries Premier – going out tamely 13-21, 14-21 in 39 minutes.
With their defeat Malaysia will return home empty from Jakarta after top seed and defending champion Lee Chong Wei was bundled out in the second round when he suffered a shock 21-10, 21-18 defeat to India’s H.S. Prannoy in the second round. The 34-year-old Chong Wei was seeking his seventh Indonesian Open title.
The Jakarta Convention Center – which is the venue for this year’s Indonesia Open because the Istora Senayan, the normal venue, is undergoing renovations – has seen seedings take a beating.
On Saturday more seeds tumbled as India’s K. Srikanth made his second Superseries final this year when he won a titanic 72-minute battle against second seed Son Wan-ho of Korea. Srikanth, the Singapore Open runners-up, advanced with a 21-15, 14-21, 24-22 win.
India, however, were denied an all-India men’s singles singles when unseeded Japan’s Kazumasa stopped giant killer H.S. Prannoy with a 17-21, 28-26, 21-18 win in a 76-minute marathon.
The women’s singles final will be between Japan’s Sayaka Sato and Korean favourite Sung Ji-hyun, the fifth seed. Sato ended Thailand’s Nitchaon Jindapol’s run in a tough three set battle that lasted 78 minutes to prevail 13-21, 21-18, 21-14.
The Thai had toppled defending champion Tai Tzu Ying, the top seed and world number one in the quarter-finals. Ji-hyun defeated China-born Zhang Beiwen of the United States 21-10, 8-21, 21-10. – BY RIZAL ABDULLAH
Â
SEMI-FINAL RESULTS
Men’s singles
Kazumasa sakai (Jon) beat H. S. Prannoy (Ind) 17-21, 28-26, 21-18
Srikanth (Ind) beat Son Wan-ho (Kor) 21-15, 14-21, 24-22
Â
Men’s Doubles
Mathias Boe-Carsten Mogensen (Den) beat Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Rian Ardianto (Ina) 21-17, 18-21, 21-12
Li Junhui-Liu Yuchen (Chn) beat Liu Cheng-Zhang Nan (Chn)Â 21-17, 18-21, 21-18
Â
Women’s Singles
Sung Ji-hyun (Kor) beat Zhang Beiwen (US) 21-10, 8-21, 21-10
Sayaka Sato (Jpn) beat Nitchaon Jindapol (Tha) 13-21, 21-18, 21-14
Women’s Doubles
Chang Ye-na-Lee So-hee (Kor) beat Shiho Tanaka-Koharu Yonemoto (Jpn) 21-14, 12-21, 21-11
Chen Qingchen-Jia Yifan (Chn) beat Anggia Shitta Awanda-Ni Ketut Mahadewi Istarani (Ina) 21-12, 21-17
Â
Mixed Doubles
Zheng Siwei-Chen Qingchen (Chn) beat Liu Yuchen-Tang Jinhua (Chn) 21-10, 21-23, 21-16
Tontowi Ahmad-Liliyana Natsir (Chn) beat Chan Peng Soon-Peck Yen Wei (Mas) 21-13, 21-14
