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Defending champion Anders Antonsen crashes out of the China Masters in semi-final

Defending champion Anders Antonsen crash out of the China Masters in semi-final
Defending champion Anders Antonsen crash out of the China Masters in semi-finalSTR / AFP / AFP / Profimedia
Defending champion Anders Antonsen bowed out of the China Masters when he lost the semi-final against World No 15 Lin Chun-Yi, 19-21, 14-21.

Anders Antonsen went into Saturday's semi-final against Lin Chun-Yi from Taiwan as the bookmakers' favourite, but Antonsen failed to live up to expectations.

He lost a close-fought contest 19-21, 14-21. In Sunday's final, Lin Chun-Yi will face Chinese Weng Hongyang.

Two months ago, Antonsen defeated the Taiwanese, but on Saturday, the Dane lacked both sharpness and margins during several key points, and the tournament's last remaining Danish player had to capitulate in the end.

Antonsen otherwise had the best start in the semi-final and succeeded well with a very attacking-minded style of play. He quickly opened up a four-point gap, but was unable to shake off the Taiwanese, who restored parity at 10-10.

At 19-19, Lin Chun-Yi then forced Antonsen into a couple of errors to put the Dane under enormous pressure before the second set.

The Taiwanese got off to the best start after the change of sides, and he led 9-4 before Antonsen found a way back into the match with sublime net play. He won six successive points and took the lead in the set.

The Danish joy was, however, short-lived, as Lin Chun-Yi turned the tide, and a frustrated Antonsen ended up looking more resigned than hungry for victory.