BWF World Tour Finals 2023: Viktor Axelsen to face Shi Yu Qi in men’s singles final
Reigning Olympic champion Axelsen will meet 2018 World Tour Finals champion Shi in the men’s singles final for a shot at a fifth title. In the women’s semi-final, Carolina Marin triumphed over Chen Yufei.
Badminton
Defending champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark is on course to claim a fifth title at the BWF World Tour Finals after demolishing compatriot Anders Antonsen in Hangzhou on Saturday (16 December).
Axelsen made short shrift of Antonsen, taking a commanding lead with a 12-point win in the first game and laying the foundation for a 21-9, 21-14 victory.
In the first semi-final, Indonesia’s last hope in the men’s singles competition was dashed after Jonatan Christie suffered a 21-16, 21-15 defeat to the People’s Republic of China’s Shi Yu Qi.
Christie came up against 2018 champion Shi, who was on song from the get-go, with the Indonesian ace battling to keep up with the Chinese shuttler.
The two players were neck and neck in the opening salvos with the match level at 11-11 shortly after the first mid-game break. Shi found some ascendency after the brief recess taking a three-point lead (17-14) before bagging the first game.
The Chinese athlete continued where he left off in the second game moving well ahead of Christie as he seemed to get the rub of the green. Shi enjoyed a seven-point advantage at the turn of the game before Christie roared back to get within two points (16-14).
But Shi was on top of his game and opened daylight on the scoreboard to claim a six-point win to secure his place in the final. Christie would rue his chances after falling short at the semi-final stage for the second consecutive year.
Earlier, Carolina Marin beat defending Olympic champion Chen Yufei 21-17, 19-21, 21-13 in their women's singles semi-final contest. In a battle of the Olympic champions, little separated the players with Marin moving ahead in the latter stages of the first game.
The second game was an even closer affair with Chen edging the second game to enforce a stalemate. Marin raced ahead in the third game to claim the victory that would send her into the final.
Discover all the results from the BWF World Tour Finals 2023 here. The competition is streamed live on Olympic Channel via Olympics.com and the official Olympics mobile app (territorial restrictions apply).