Paris: Former world No. 1 Lee Chong Wei will face world No. 9 Wang Zhengming of China in the semi-finals of the French Open after both players enjoyed quarter-final victories in Paris.
Lee Chong Wei, winner at the 2011 French Open, needed just 36 minutes to beat world No. 22 Japanese Sho Sasaki in the quarter-finals.
Smashing the shuttlecock with ferocious power, the 33-year-old Lee put Sasaki on the defensive right from the start in the opening set. Taking hold of a 11-6 lead at the interval, Lee would go on to close out the set 21-9.
Sasaki tried to mix things up in the second set by avoiding too many high position shots, still, that couldn’t put a dent in Lee’s game. Lee was able to strategically moving his opponent around the court, fired up smashes effectively in scoring points for himself. The match ended with a pushed from Lee towards Sasaki’s left hand to force the Japanese to hit a weak lift that could not clear the net. Lee sealed the second 21-12 to set up a clash with Wang Zhengming of China in French Open semi-finals.
Wang, on the other hand, had to battle for a tougher than expected encounter with Rajiv Ouseph of England, winning 21-17, 12-21, 21-8. No. 2 seed Jan O Jorgensen will clash with No. 6 seed Chou Tien Chen in other men’s semi-finals.
Former women’s singles world champion No. 8 seed Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand completed a sensational shocking quarter-final by upsetting No. 1 seed Saina Nehwal of India 21-9, 21-15 on Friday to reach the semi-finals of the French Open. Intanon will play No. 4 seed Wang Shixian of China on Saturday. Women’s No. 3 seed Tai Tzu Ying will set up a semi-finals showdown with No. 2 seed Carolina Marin tomorrow.
In men’s doubles, No. 1 seeds Lee Yong Dae/Yoo Yeon Seong saw off Hiroyuki Endo/Kenichi Hayakawa of Japan 21-11, 21-11 to play compatriots Kim Gi Jung/Kim Sa Rang for a final berth.
