Taiwanese badminton ace Chou Tien-chen was defeated in the semi-finals of the men’s singles at the Indonesia Masters yesterday by World No. 1 Kento Momota of Japan.
The world No. 4 and fourth-seeded Chou fell to top seed Momota 21-19, 21-11 in 46 minutes on the resort island of in Bali, where the tournament is taking place in a bubble without fans because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Momota extended his head-to-head record with Chou to 13-2.
Photo: AFP / Badminton Association of Indonesia
In the opening game, Momota edged to a four-point lead of 11-7 at the interval before Chou made a comeback to level the score at 17-17 by pocketing six of eight points.
Momota then found game point at 20-19, winning when Chou hit a shot wide.
The Japanese player was more aggressive in the second game and raced to an 11-4 lead at the interval.
Chou struggled to get back into position following Momota’s shots to the back of the court, which enabled the Japanese to feed off the pace.
Outstanding net play from Momota’s forehand side widened the score to 17-8 and he secured a match point opportunity at 20-10, with Chou saving the first, but conceding the second.
Momota today faces third-seeded Anders Antonsen of Denmark in the final after he beat unseeded Kidambi Srikanth of India 21-14, 21-9.
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two