Mulheim an der Ruhr: No. 2 seed Chen Long has fallen short of a berth in the final of the German Open, beaten by Taiwanese and No. 14 seed Wang Tzu Wei on Saturday.
The Olympic champion Chen Long was a little sluggish to start his semi-final match, losing the first set 18-21, before winning the second set 21-8.
Chen rallied from 11-13 down in the decider to take a brief 14-13 lead, but Wang kept his coolness and grabbed the next 4 points to eventually claim the decider 21-18.
Wang will play compatriot No. 6 seed Chou Tien Chen in the final.
Malaysia’s challenge in mixed doubles fizzled out on Saturday after No. 4 seed Tan Kian Meng/Lai Pei Jing bowed out of the tournament by losing to No. 1 seeds Lu Kai/Huang Yaqiong 21-16, 16-21, 17-21.
Rio Olympic women’s singles champion Carolina Marin will take on Japanese player Ake Yamaguchi in the final after Marin fought back from dropping a set to overcome Japanese player Minatsu Mitani 21-10, 17-21, 21-18 in the semi-finals.
