Changzhou: Two-time Olympic champion Lin Dan suffered a surprise defeat to fellow compatriot No. 3 seed Qiao Bin at the China Masters semi-finals on Saturday.
No. 1 seed Lin Dan who won the tournament in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2014 and 2016, squandered a 16-7 lead in the first set, allowing Qiao to score 14 consecutive points to grab the first set 21-16.
Lin bounced back and managed to force a decider when he claimed the second set 21-15.
However, the third set was one-sided as Qiao was leading throughout the whole set by outlasting Lin Dan 21-14.
Qiao will play No. 2 seed Tian Houwei in the final.
The No. 2 seed Tian was also made to work to overcome teammate Huang Yuxiang 21-18, 17-21, 21-6 to make the final.
In men’s doubles, the Indonesia/Malaysia duo of Hendra Setiawan/Tan Boon Heong couldn’t cross the finish line when they were leading in the third set with 14-8, 17-15, succumbing to No. 1 seed Chen Hung Ling/Wang Chi-lin of Taiwan 14-21, 21-13, 18-21 in 41 minutes.
Women’s singles No. 2 seed Aya Ohori of Japan saw off China’s Gao Fangjie 21-17, 21-13 meet teammate Saena Kawakami in the final. Kawakami defeated Cai Yanyan of China 18-21, 21-11, 21-8 to make the women’s singles final.
