# Chong Wei to play defending champion Axelsen in the final
# ‘Chong Wei played a more patient game’ – coach Seu Bok
Less than 24 hours after his three-game defeat to Son Won-ho in the round robin Group A match Datuk Lee Chong Wei defeated the Korean in the semi-finals 21-17, 21-11 in 49 minutes to reach the men’s singles final in the USD1 million Dubai Superseries Finals on Saturday.
In Sunday’s final the 35-year-old Malaysian ace will face Denmark’s defending champion and world number one Viktor Axelsen who defeated China’s Shi Yuqi 21-12, 21-8 in his semi-final match.
Both, Chong Wei and Axelsen had lost to their semi-final opponents in the group matches. The luck of the draw pitted them against the same opponents in the semi-finals.
While Chong Wei lost to Won-ho 21-13, 20-22, 15-21 while Axelsen beaten by Shi Yuqi 13-21, 21-18, 21-17 in his Group B match.
“In the semi-finals Chong Wei played a different game compared to the one he played in the group. It was a different approach in the semis and he more patient in his game,” said Chong Wei’s coach Datuk Tey Seu Bok when contacted in Dubai after the win.
Saturday’s semi-final match between Chong Wei and Won-ho – which was dubbed as the ‘Battle of the Former World No 1s’ – the Malaysian leads the Korean 12-3 in the head to head statistics.
The women’s singles final will be between India’s P.V. Sindhu and Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi. It was will be a repeat of their Group A match which Sindhu won 21-9, 21-13.
In the semi-finals Sindhu stopped China’s former junior world champion Chen Yufei 21-15, 21-18. Sindhu’s win, however, was marred by a yellow card for misconduct. In the first semi-final Yamaguchi upset Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon in three game – 17-21, 21-12, 21-19 in 72 minutes.
Chong Wei is a four-time winner of the Superseries Finals title – in Kota Kinabalu (2008), Johor Bahru (2009), Taiwan (2010) and Kuala Lumpur (2013).BY RIZAL ABDULLAH
SEMI-FINAL RESULTS
MEN’S SINGLES
Lee Chong Wei (Mas) beat Son Won-ho (Kor) 21-17, 21-11
Viktor Axelsen (Den) beat Shi Yuqi (Chn) 21-12, 21-8
MEN’S DOUBLES
Marcus Fernaldi Gideon-Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo (Ina) beat Takeshi Kamura-Keigo Sonoda (Jpn) 21-10, 18-21, 21-16
Liu Cheng-Zhang Nan (Chn) beat Mathias Boe-Carsten Mogensen (Den) 21-17, 21-16
WOMEN’S SINGLES
P.V. Sindhu (Ind) beat Chen Yufei (Chn) 21-15, 21-18
Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) beat Ratchanok Intanon (Thai) 17-21, 21-12, 21-19
WOMEN’S DOUBLES
Yuki Fukushima-Sayaka Hirota (Jpn) beat Huang Yaqiong-Yu Xiaohan (Chn) 21-13, 21-14
Shiho Tanaka-Koharu Yonemoto (Jpn) beat Kamilla Rhytter Juhl-Christinna Pedersen (Den) 21-19, 21-19
MIXED DOUBLES
Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet (Hkg) beat Wang Yilyu-Huang Dongping (Chn) 18-21, 21-18, 21-17
Zheng Siwei-Chen Qingchen (Chn) beat Tontowi Ahmad-Liliyana Natsir (Ina) 21-12, 21-17
- Advertisement - 
