Ratchanok sees off Schenk to reach final

Ratchanok sees off Schenk to reach final

Thai star faces No.2 seed Li in China Open

SHANGHAI : Ratchanok Intanon rallied to beat Juliane Schenk 2-1 to reach the final of the China Open badminton tournament yesterday.

Having defeated the German at the 2012 Olympics, the Thai teenager won 18-21, 21-10, 21-14 in just under one hour in the women's singles semi-finals.

Ratchanok is the only Thai left in the tournament after Narissapat Lam and Saralee Thoungthongkam were defeated by China's second seeds Wang Xiaoli and Yu Yang 21-9, 21-4 in the women's doubles semi-finals.

In today's final, Ratchanok will face second seed Li Xuerui of China, who beat Japan's Minatsu Mitani 21-8, 23-21.

Ratchanok won her third straight world youth title last year but decided not to seek a fourth crown this year to pursue her professional career.

She is now playing in the Chinese league thanks to her performance at the Olympics in London, where she reached the women's singles quarter-finals.

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