Arctic Open: Anmol Kharb loses to Yamaguchi, ends with maiden Super 500 semifinal finish

Vantaa (Finland), Oct 11 (PTI) Rising Indian shuttler Anmol Kharb's impressive run at the Arctic Open Super 500 badminton tournament ended with a straight-game loss to three-time world champion Akane Yamaguchi here on Saturday.

The 18-year-old from Faridabad, part of India's gold-winning team at the 2024 Asia Team Championships, stayed competitive in the early stages of both the games but Yamaguchi pulled away in the second half to register a comfortable 21-10, 21-13 win in 29 minutes.

Yamaguchi will now take on the winner of the match between two Thai shuttler -- fourth seed Busanan Ongbamrungphan and second seed Ratchanok Intanon.

It was a creditable semifinal finish for Kharb, who outwitted notable top-30 players such as Wen Chi Hsu (No. 32) and sixth seed Lin Hsiang Ti (World No. 21), before defeating Denmark's Amelie Schulz 21-15, 21-14 to reach her first-ever Super 500 semifinal.

A national champion at 16, Kharb produced a spirited performance but struggled to match the experience and craft of Yamaguchi, a former world number one.

The world number four Japanese surged to a 7-3 lead in the first game, though Kharb narrowed it to 6-7. Yamaguchi entered the interval with a slender 11-9 advantage, before dominating post-break, winning 10 of the next 11 points and stamping her authority with precise strokes and court coverage.

The first game ended with a game-point lift at the backline, which Kharb challenged unsuccessfully via video referral.

In the second game, Yamaguchi again raced to a 7-3 lead as Kharb struggled to extend rallies or pressure her opponent. The Japanese once again had a 11-9 cushion at the interval.

Kharb kept herself afloat till 12-14 but made few errors in desperation as well. Yamaguchi never looked in any kind of trouble and maintained control to eventually seal the match when Kharb found the net.

Kharb, who finished runner-up at the Cameroon International earlier this year and also claimed wins at International Challengers in Belgium and Poland, will take valuable lessons from her contest against the Japanese star. PTI ATK AM ATK AM AM