Tai Tzu, Yamaguchi advance, set to clash for crown

The women’s singles final of the BWF World Championships will see the top two seeds crossing swords after Tai Tzu Ying and Akane Yamaguchi won their respective semi-final matches in Huelva, Spain, on Saturday. 

Top-seeded Tai Tzu was made to sweat by China’s He Bing Jiao before she could win 21-17, 13-21, 21-14 to make her first World Championship final. 

In the other semi-final, Zhang Yi Man, another Chinese shuttler, fought well but ultimately had to bow to Yamaguchi’s experience. The second seeded Japanese won 21-19, 21-19. 

Despite the struggle, Taiwan’s Tai Tzu was pretty happy with her game. “I felt very good. In the second game the shuttle didn’t go where I wanted, so I felt like I wasted the opportunity. I told myself not to make mistakes and I had to be prepared for her speed. I will just do my best on Sunday,” Tai Tzu said.

Yamaguchi, on the other hand, revealed that she was desperate to avoid a third game against Zhang. “It was close in the second game and there was the possibility of a third but I wanted to avoid that, so I pushed harder at the end of the second game,” Yamaguchi said.

About her final opponent, the Japanese said: “Tai and I have played many times, so there’s no special preparation for the final. We haven’t played each other recently. She’s a technical and physical player, she’s good in everything. I just have to play my game.”

With neither of the two finalists having won the title, women’s singles will get a new world champion this time.