|
|
|
| April 2, 2006 | Sunday | Rabi-ul-Awwal 3, 1427 |
Boonsak sets final date with Wei
JOHOR BARU (Malaysia), April 1: Thailand’s Boonsak Ponsana stormed into the men’s singles final of the Asian badminton championship on Saturday, setting up a showdown with the Malaysian top seed.
Boonsak, a law student from Bangkok, delivered a hard-fought victory over China’s Chen Yu in their semifinal clash at the Johor Baru indoor stadium. He will battle Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei for the singles crown.
Chong Wei, the home crowd’s obvious favourite, dismissed South Korea’s Park Sung Hwan in the other semifinal, and his performance throughout the event has marked him as the clear favourite.
But the Malaysian underplayed the hype on Saturday, saying the Thai shuttler would be a tough opponent.
“Boonsak has beaten all the top players in the world before, which means he has the quality. Add that to his never-say-die attitude on the court and I have to be on my toes tomorrow,” Lee said.
“No doubts — he is a good player and the match could go either way.”
The two last met four months ago at the Southeast Asian Games team event in Manila, and it was Lee who triumphed in three games under the 15-point format.
But for Boonsak, that match is already ancient history.
Malaysia’s winning ways continued in the men’s doubles draw, with the unseeded 2004 World Junior champion pair of Hoon Thien How and Tan Boon Heong slated to face veterans Choong Tan Fook and Lee Wan Wah in the final.
Hoon and Tan overcame the South Korean pair of Hwang Ji Man and Jung Tae Keuk in their semi-final clash, while Choong and Lee brushed aside the second seed Luluk Hadiyanto and Alven Yulianto of Indonesia in the other semi-final.
In the women’s singles, defending champion Wang Chen of Hong Kong will go for her third title after booking her place in the final with an easy straight games win over China’s Jiang Yanjia.
Wang, who is also the tournament’s top seed, won the title in Jakarta in 2003 and again in Hyderabad, India last year.
In the final, she will face her old foe Mori Kaori of Japan in a repeat of last year’s showdown where the China-born shuttler won in straight games under the 15-point format.
Results:
Men singles semifinals: Lee Chong Wei (MAS x1) bt Park Sung Hwan (KOR x9-16) 21-15, 21-15; Boonsak Ponsana (THA x5-8) bt Chen Yu (CHN x9-16) 24-22, 21-13
Women singles semifinals: Wang Cheng (HKG x1) bt Jiang Yanjia (CHN x5-8) 21-13, 21-18; Kaori Mori (JPN x2) bt Li Chen (CHN) 21-17, 21-19.—Agencies
|
|
|
|
