Kuala Lumpur: After beating World No. 1 Kento Momota in the second round on Thursday, Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie continued his strong run of form in quarter-finals, defeating Denmark’s No. 6 seed Viktor Axelsen 21-18, 21-19 to advance to the semi-finals of the Malaysia Open.
The 21-year-old Indonesian shuttler who was born in Jakarta, used terrific court coverage and pinpoint accuracy to nullify the Dane who won the India Open last Sunday.
Christie’s next opponent will be the Rio Olympic champion Chen Long after the No. 4 seed outlasted No. 8 seed Kidambi Srikanth of India 21-18, 21-19.
Elsewhere, the 35-year-old Lin Dan was pushed to the limit by Kanta Tsuneyama in a three-set duel that stretched to 70 minutes.
The World No. 16 Lin Dan attributed his quarter-final win to his experience that shone through as he dismissed the Japanese 16-21, 21-17, 21-10.
“My experience really made a difference in such a high pressure match,” said Lin.
“Tsuneyama was patient in the first set, and we were neck-and-neck in the second set. He did not attack much in the decider, and I used that to my advantage,” added Lin.
Lin will face compatriot No. 2 seed Shi Yuqi in the semi-final. Surprisingly, Shi held a 5-1 career meeting advantage over Lin.
In men’s doubles, No. 8 seeds Fajar Alfian/Muhammad Rian Ardianto of Indonesia sealed a spot in the last four after shocking No. 1 seeds compatriots Marcus Fernaldi Gideon/Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo 23-21, 19-21, 21-18 in 55 minutes. Alfian/Ardianto will take on No. 3 seeds Takeshi Kamura/Keigo Sonoda of Japan on Saturday.
Meanwhile, unseeded Takuro Hoki/Yugo Kobayashi of Japan will meet No. 2 seeds Li Junhui/Liu Yuchen of China in another men’s doubles semi-final match.
