China's Shi Yuqi has outclassed Chinese Taipei's Chou Tien-chen in straight-sets at the ongoing BWF World Tour Finals in Guangzhou on Friday. This was the 22-year-old's third win of the event in group A as he looks to pick up a third title this season.
Shi won his first Super Series title at the French Open in October 2016 and since then has proved to be one of the top players in the world. He was dominant from the beginning, and a forehand drop shot helped the Chinese win the first point.
The top Chinese player took the first game with ease, 21-17. Shi continued to keep the pressure on his rival and bagged the second game 21-19 to seal the deal. His third win in as many days helped him book a spot in the semi-finals.
Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan (L) of China compete against Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi of Japan during their women's doubles match on day three of the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals in Guangzhou, China, December 14, 2018. /VCG Photo
Meanwhile, in the women's double, China's Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan went down fighting against their Japanese rivals Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi 19-21, 21-19, 21-14 in a tight three-game contest.
Notably, this year, unlike the other four categories, there are no clear favorites in women's doubles this year.
The Chinese pair, who had won the women's doubles gold at the 2017 BWF World Championships, won the first game point with a beautiful smash at 21-19.
The Japanese duo began to claw their way back into the game and took the second game. They started the third and deciding game on a positive note and kept their momentum going as they grabbed the match point at 21-14.
With this loss, the Chinese pair has now got one win and two defeats in the group A.