Srikanth stuns World No. 6 Chou Tien-Chen to reach Canada Open semifinals
Kidambi Srikanth defeated top seed and World No. 6 Chou Tien-Chen in straight games to reach the Canada Open semifinals. The former World No. 1 showed superb form after injury, not dropping a game since the first round.
Hyderabad: Former World No. 1 Kidambi Srikanth produced a dominant performance at the Markham Pan Am Centre, defeating top seed and World No. 6 Chou Tien-Chen to storm into the semifinals of the Canada Open on Saturday.
Srikanth, on the comeback trail after a challenging injury phase, sealed a straight-game victory 21-18, 21-9 in a commanding display of experience and resilience, wrapping up the victory in just 43 minutes.
This marks Srikanth’s second BWF World Tour semifinal of the season, following his runner-up finish at the Malaysia Masters Super 500 earlier this year. After losing the opening game in his first-round match against compatriot Priyanshu Rajawat, the 31-year-old has not dropped a game since, signalling a strong return to form.
Srikanth will next face Japan’s Kenta Nishimoto, the third seed, who got past India’s S Sankar Muthusamy Subramanian in a hard-fought quarterfinal. The 21-year-old Subramanian displayed grit and promise but fell short against the higher-ranked opponent 15-21, 21-5, 17-21.
In women’s singles, Shriyanshi Valishetty’s spirited run came to an end in the quarterfinals. The 18-year-old pushed Amalie Schulz to the brink in a three-game thriller but eventually lost 21-12, 19-21, 19-21, wrapping up a memorable campaign.
