BADMINTON/Taiwan shuttler Tai Tzu-ying defeated in All England Open semifinals

Taipei, March 17 (CNA) Taiwanese badminton star Tai Tzu-ying (戴資穎) lost in two straight games to Spain's Carolina Marin in the Yonex All England Open Badminton Championships semifinal on Sunday (Taipei time).

Tai, ranked No. 3 in the world, fell to world No. 5 Marin 13-21, 12-21 in a semifinal match that lasted 46 minutes at the Utilita Arena Birmingham.

In the opener, the players went back and forth early to tie at 4-4, before Marin took 7 of the next 8 points on a combination of her strong play at the net and several unforced errors by Tai.

After the mid-game interval, Tai managed to narrow the gap to only 2 points at 12-14, but Marin again took the upper hand to close out the game 21-13.

The second game proceeded much as the first, with Marin jumping out to an 11-5 lead in the first half. Again, Tai nearly pulled even at 10-11, only to see Marin go on a 9-1 run on her way to a 21-12 victory.

Tai, who played the match with both her knees and ankles taped, said she had been struggling with knee injuries since playing in the French Open earlier this month.

Despite the discomfort, she said she had nevertheless tried to overcome it and adapt, in what is likely to be her last career appearance at the English tournament.

Following her victory, Marin will go on to face Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in the championship's final later on Sunday.

Tai, meanwhile, will return to Taiwan for at least a few weeks to rest and receive treatment on her knees. Her next competition is likely to be the Badminton Asia Championships, which will be held in Ningbo, China from April 9-14.