Sourabh Verma records emphatic semi-final win in Vietnam Open
Sourabh verma continued with his rich vein of form as he defeated his Japanese counterpart in straight games to advance to the final of the BWF Tour Super 100 tournament. The opponent fought back well and pushed Verma to the edge in both games but the Indian ultimately prevailed comfortably.
Second-seed Sourabh Verma eased through to the Vietnam Open final after recording a comprehensive win against Japan’s Minoru Koga in a tie that lasted 51 minutes. The Indian is yet to drop a game in the tournament and will look to seal his second BWF Tour Super 100 triumph of the calendar year.
Koga was himself in good touch and had recorded some impressive victories throughout the tournament’s course. He fought tooth and nail in an attempt to make the world number 38 succumb but the Indian had the last laugh as he recorded a 22-20, 21-15 victory in Ho Chi Minh.
The only representative of the country in the event, Verma hs had several close battles throughout the course of the competition but has proved to be clutch in the decisive moments. He won a stiff battle in the second round by prevailing over Kodai Naraoka 22-20, 22-20, before a thrilling contest against Yu Igarashi ended 25-23, 24-22 in his favour. Local shuttler Tienh Minh Nguyen turned out to be a cakewalk for him as he recorded his best win in the tournament so far, 21-13, 21-18.
Verma had won in the Netherlands and Russia last year before adding the Hyderabad title to his kitty in 2019. He will be looking forward to overcome the challenge posed by China’s Sun Fei Xiang, who saw off Lin Yu Hsien 21-17, 21-16 in the penultimate round, in the final on Sunday.
