Chinese Zheng Siwei/Huang Yaqiong are on to the finals tomorrow after a three-set match against the third seed Indonesians Tontowi Ahmad/Liliyana Natsir.
At yesterday’s quarter-finals, the Chinese couple Zheng/Huang played an impressive match against British Chris Adcock/Gabriella Adcock. The hope was high for the Chinese duo who, within a year, have gone from being world ranked 46 to the top.
What else can we expect today? Read today’s prelude here!
The Chinese couple lived up to the expectations during the first set, when they took complete control. Their Indonesian opponents seemed to hesitate during the rally’s which ended up costing them vital points. Ahmad/Natsir left first set with a loss of 11-21.
- We felt like we had the tempo in the first set. We were able to control it, said Zheng Siwei after the match.
During the second set, the story was quite different. A higher level of energy entered the Indonesian part of the court, and both couples fought for every point. The last rally was the longest of the set and both couples were, at different times, close to the ground where they managed to deliver impressive shots.
The Indonesians played with more confidence during the second set which resulted in a win.
The third set started out with a few flaws from the Indonesian camp and this brought the Chinese Zheng/Huang in the lead.
At 11-6 it seemed as if the Chinese couple had the upper hand, but in the blink of an eye, the score reached 13-13.
Zheng/Huang took the lead during the end of the third set with Indonesian Ahmad/Natsir still giving it all they got. At 20-15 the Indonesians managed to bring home two points before the matched ended at 21-17.
It was not only on court that the two nations combatted. In the stands, the Chinese and Indonesian fans fought hard to see who could cheer the loudest. The loud cheering from both camps brought fun and optimistic atmosphere to the court.
- It gave us a warm and happy feeling when our countrymen were cheering for us. We felt very supported, says Huang Yaqiong about the Chinese fans.
Tomorrow the Chinese duo will either be up against Korean couple Seo Seung Jae/Chae YuJung or the Thai pair Dechapol Puavaranukroh/Sapsiree Taerttianachai.
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