SINGAPORE – Having got past Indonesia’s world No. 7 Gregoria Tunjung and South Korea’s top-ranked An Se-young, Singapore’s Yeo Jia Min had achieved a breakthrough by reaching the last four of the India Open.
But the final proved to be a step too far for Yeo, who fell 21-13, 21-18 to Chinese Taipei’s world No. 3 Tai Tzu-ying in her first semi-final of a Badminton World Federation World Tour Super 750 event on Jan 20.
World No. 20 Yeo, who has yet to take a game off Tai in five meetings, believes the 29-year-old is a “different player” from the rest.
Yeo, 24, said: “Her skills allow her to play some unexpected shots to change the momentum of the match with the speed of her shots.”
Bursting out of the blocks, Yeo got off to a good start with 4-1 and 7-5 leads. But with the scores tied at 11-11, Tai then pulled ahead and sealed the first game.
Recovering well in the second game by winning seven of the first nine points, Yeo was in control with a 15-9 advantage before a resilient Tai went on a 12-3 run to close out the match.
Yeo added: “I’m a little disappointed I was unable to keep my lead towards the end. However, looking at the positives, it is another match that will help me to see where to improve again.
“In the second game, I tried to counter her gameplay and that kind of worked. I tried to ride the momentum but, after the interval, she was a bit more focused and was able to keep the rallies a bit longer and get used to my style more.”
Despite the defeat, Yeo can take heart from a bright start to her 2024 season. She has a 5-2 record, having reached the quarter-finals of the Jan 9-14 Malaysia Open, a Super 1000 event, before losing to No. 1 An.
“My attitude towards every challenge is a bit different. I’m definitely playing better than last year. I’m now very excited when I’m going to play any top player,” said Yeo, who had started her 2023 season with five straight losses.
“I just really want to bring my best game in every match and not focus too much on the outcome. I’m trying to bring my speed up at different times of the matches and I’m happy that my endurance did improve over the years.”
Tai also believes that Yeo has become a better player since their last meeting in October’s Denmark Open.
The fourth seed said: “She moves around really well and very fast, so it gives me more pressure to return her shots.
“I had to be patient and focused on every point.”
There will be no rest for Yeo, with a flight to Jakarta waiting for her after the match – next up is the Jan 23-28 Super 500 Indonesia Masters.
“It will be my third back-to-back competition, so I will have to try my best to maintain a good physical condition for next week,” she said.
Tai will meet world No. 2 Chen Yufei in the final on Jan 21 in a repeat of the Tokyo Olympics gold-medal match won by the Chinese.
Chen had beaten 10th-ranked compatriot Wang Zhiyi 21-13, 21-18 in the other semi-final.
In the men’s singles, Hong Kong’s 18th-ranked Lee Cheuk Yiu reached the final after a 21-13, 15-21, 21-19 win over Japan’s sixth-ranked Kodai Naraoka.
Earlier, he had beaten Indonesia’s fourth-ranked Anthony Ginting and Thailand’s 2023 world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn.
In the final, he will meet China’s world No. 2 Shi Yuqi, who beat India’s ninth-ranked H.S. Prannoy 21-15, 21-5.
