BIRMINGHAM: Ratchanok Intanon continued her impressive comeback campaign on Saturday with a straight-sets (22-20, 21-16) win over Akane Yamaguchi of Japan to reach the finals of the All England Open badminton tournament. 1, now ranked seventh and seeded fifth in the Birmingham event, needed just 49 minutes to complete her match at the Barclaycard Arena. It was sweet revenge for Ratchanok, who was eliminated by Yamaguchi in the last-16 round at the 2016 Rio Olympics. 2 had beaten Ratchanok in their last encounter in the same tournament and at the same stage a year ago. The All England is Ratchanok’s first event since her exit in the group stage of the World Superseries Finals in December.

Source: Bangkok Post March 11, 2017 13:23 UTC