Jonatan Christie Faces Biased Line Judges in China Masters Semis

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Jonatan Christie encounters controversial line calls in the China Masters semifinal. (Photo: BWF)
Jonatan Christie encounters controversial line calls in the China Masters semifinal. (Photo: BWF)

Shenzhen: Jonatan Christie found himself at the center of an awkward situation during the semifinals of the 2024 China Masters Super 750 tournament, as he faced four incorrect line calls in just 13 rallies.

Denmark’s Anders Antonsen is set to face Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie in Sunday’s final. However, Christie’s place in the final might have been at risk if not for the Hawkeye challenge system, which allowed him to overturn multiple erroneous calls against him.

Highlights of Jonatan Christie vs. Shi Yuqi in the 2024 China Masters semifinals:

After winning the first game 21-17, Christie was forced to rely heavily on the Hawkeye system during his match against China’s top seed, Shi Yu Qi, on Shi’s home turf.

A smash from Shi Yuqi that landed outside the sideline was called in. Christie challenged, and the hawkeye confirmed the shuttle was out. This scenario repeated itself multiple times.

In just 13 rallies, Christie challenged four incorrect calls, all of which were overturned in his favor. At least two of these were clearly out-of-bound shots. Without the Hawkeye challenge system, the Indonesian would have trailed 11-7 in the second game, instead of leading by the same scoreline.

Former World No. 1 mixed doubles player Joachim Fischer of Denmark, now a commentator on Denmark TV station, expressed his frustration:

“No, no, no, this is outrageous. I can’t recall seeing anything like this before.”

“It’s Embarrassing!”

Fischer added, “Four wrong calls against Christie, all corrected by challenges—it’s embarrassing.”

He also acknowledged that such frustrations stem from historical issues in badminton, where foreign players often faced biased officiating when playing in China before the introduction of Hawkeye.

“In the past, it was much worse—shuttles 30-40 centimeters out would still be called in. The challenge system has been a significant improvement,” said Fischer.

From 11-7 in the second game, Christie maintained control, ultimately winning 21-17, 21-16, and booking his place in the final against Denmark’s Anders Antonsen.

In men’s doubles, Sabar Karyaman Gutama/Moh Reza Pahlevi Isfahani of Indonesia will meet Jin Yong/Seo Seung Jae of Korea for the China Masters crown.

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