World No. 2 Tai Tzu-ying (???) beat compatriot Pai Yu-po (???) 21-13, 21-14 to reach the semifinals of badminton’s Taipei Open, with Chou Tien-chen (???) also progressing to the last four of the men’s singles.
In Friday’s women’s singles quarterfinal, Tai put in a dominant performance, reeling in five consecutive points to reach 19-12 in the final game before closing it out 21-14.
It was Tai’s second win over Pai in as many weeks, following a 21-13, 21-14 victory in the first round of the Singapore Open.
Tai, an Olympic silver medalist and three-time Taipei Open champion, will face world No. 42 compatriot Hsu Wen-chi (???) in the semifinals.
In the men’s singles, World No. 4 Chou Tien-chen (???) booked a place in the last four after a toe injury forced compatriot Chen Chi-ting (???) to retire in the second game of their quarterfinal matchup.
Chou, a three-time Taipei Open title holder, will face Malaysia’s Soong Joo Ven (???) in the semifinals.
Meanwhile, Olympic gold medalists Lee Yang (??) and Wang Chi-lin (???) defeated compatriots Lee Chia-han (???) and Lin Yong-sheng (???) in straight games 21-16, 21-13 in their men’s doubles quarterfinal Friday.
The men’s doubles pairing also faces Malaysian opposition in the form of Boon Xin Yuan (???) and Wong Tien Ci (???) in the semifinals on Saturday.
The 2022 Taipei Open, a Super 300 event that carries a total purse of US$500,000 (NT$14.950 million), is being held for the 39th time, with the participation of 92 players from 26 countries.
The tournament was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel