World No. 1 Viktor Axelsen reached the final of the Indian Open Badminton Championship by beating Indonesia’s Jonathan Christie 21-6, 21-12 on Saturday.
The Danish ace and top seed, who just won the Malaysia Open on Sunday, beat his fourth-placed opponent in 38 minutes in the men’s singles semi-finals in New Delhi.
“I feel very good. I felt really fresh for my match today,” said Axelsen, whose quarter-final match on Friday was abandoned when compatriot Rasmus Gemke retired with a leg injury.
“I moved well and the shots were good.”
Axelsen, who won the India Open in 2017 and 2019, will take on Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn, who fought Indonesia’s Anthony Sinisuka Ginting 27-25, 21-15 in Sunday’s final.
“I am looking forward to a good final and I have played in the final with Vitidsarn several times,” he said.
Vitidsarn, 21, a former junior world champion, relied on strong defense to counter Ginting’s attacking style, which started 12-6 in the 58-minute fight.
Women’s top seed and Japanese star Akane Yamaguchi beat Thailand’s Supanida Katetong 21-17, 21-16 to set up a title fight with Ahn Se-young in a repeat of Sunday’s final in Malaysia, which Yamaguchi won.
The two-time world champion and reigning world No. 1 remained at the top of her game and defeated the Thai in 39 minutes.
In the other semi-final, the South Korean An played the game and beat the Chinese He Bing Jiao with a score of 11-21, 21-16, 21-16.
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Source: sports.yahoo.com