Swiss Open: Srikanth downs fighting Antonsen, enters semifinals
Basel: World Championships silver medallist Kidambi Srikanth notched up a stunning three-game win over world number three Anders Antonsen of Denmark to progress to the men”s singles semifinals of Swiss Open Super 300 badminton tournament here.
Seventh seed Srikanth, who is playing only his third tournament after recovering from Covid-19, prevailed 21-19,19-21,22-20 over second seed Antonsen in a gruelling match late on Friday night. The world No. 12 Indian will face fourth seed and Asian Games gold medallist Jonatan Christie of Indonesia on Saturday.
The 29-year-old from Guntur thus joined compatriots PV Sindhu, HS Prannoy in the last four. Srikanth was in exceptional form as he galloped to a huge 9-1 lead in a jiffy but Antonsen soon came up with a 11-point burst to turn the tables on the Indian. A tight battle ensued but Srikanth managed to keep his nose ahead to take early advantage in the match.
In the second game, Srikanth had a 9-6 lead but Antonsen went past the Indian to move to a 15-12 advantage and maintained it to 19-16 before taking the match to the decider. The Dane threatened to end Srikanth”s run when he jumped to a 13-7 lead in the third game but the Indian clawed back to 19-16 and ensured he had the last laugh to cement his place in the semifinals.
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