BADMINTON/Shuttler Chou advances to men's singles semifinals at Spain Masters

Taipei, March 30 (CNA) Taiwanese badminton player Chou Tien-chen (周天成) advanced to the men's singles semifinals at the Madrid Spain Masters on Friday after defeating Malaysia's Leong Jun Hao (梁峻豪) in straight sets.

Chou, who currently ranks world No. 15, defeated Leong 21-16, 21-12 in their first head-to-head in 33 minutes.

While leading 9-6 in the opener, Chou clinched six consecutive points to extend his lead to 15-6, and despite Leong's effort to even up the score, Chou eventually took away the first game 21-16.

In the second game, Chou took a small lead early on but was behind 9-11 by the interval.

However, he regained momentum and went on to win 12 points while Leong got one, closing the game 21-12 and winning the match.

Chou will next face France's Toma Junior Popov in the semifinals on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Taiwan's Lee Chia-hsin (李佳馨) and Teng Chun-hsun (鄧淳薰) also advanced to the women's doubles semifinals Friday, defeating third-seeds Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto of India 21-13, 21-19.