Jakarta: The 21-year-old World No. 15 Jonathan Christie of Indonesia who shocked World No. 2 Shi Yuqi of China in the first round of Asian Games, pulled off another upset as he battled past World No. 10 Kenta Nishimoto of Japan 21-15, 15,21, 21-19 on Monday in front of his home crowd.
“Wow, I am excited to be able to play in the final. It’s only my second Asian Games, and it’s my first in the men’s singles event,” said Christie after Monday’s semi-final match.
“Thanks for the supports from Indonesian fans around the country,” added Christie.
Christie is set to play Taiwan’s Chou Tien Chen in the final.
Chou, on the other hand, halted another Indonesian, Anthony Sinisuka Ginting’s strong run in the tournament as he beat Ginting 16-21, 23-21, 21-17 in the second men’s semi-final.
Both Chou, and Ginting fell to their knees after the 78 minutes’ battle.
“I am playing my best every time I stand on the court,” said the exhausted Chou.
“Christie is a very talented player and tomorrow’s final will be a tough match. It really does not matter how you rank in the World rankings, it’s all depends the performance in every match,” added Chou.
Meanwhile, Indonesia has guaranteed both gold and silver in men’s doubles, as World No. 1 Marcus Fernaldi Gideon/Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo will set up an all-Indonesian final with compatriots World No. 9 Fajar Alfian Muhammad/Rian Ardianto on Tuesday.
