Sourabh reaches semis of Chinese Taipei Grand Prix

Sourabh Varma reached the semifinals of the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix with a 7-11, 11-1, 11-3, 11-7 win over Japan’s Kento Horiuchi.

Sourabh Varma has a 3-0 record against his next opponent Hsu Jen Hao.

Indian shuttler Sourabh Varma is one step away from making his third successive final as he entered the men’s singles semifinals of the Chinese Taipei Grand Prix following a hard-fought win over Japan’s Kento Horiuchi here on Friday.

Sourabh, who reached the finals at two international challengers - Belgian and Poland Open - defeated Kento 7-11, 11-1, 11-3, 11-7 in a 31-minute match to set up a clash with Chinese Taipei’s Hsu Jen Hao at the USD 55,000 event. 2011 national champion Sourabh has a 3-0 record against Hao and he will hope to come up on top on Saturday at the Hsing Chuang Gymansium here.

Kento had opened up a 3-0 lead early on and though Sourabh managed to draw parity at 4-4, the Japanese broke off at 7-7 to grab the opening game. A jolted Sourabh dished out a completely dominating game in the next.

In the third game, Sourabh once again lead from start to finish to lead 2-1 in the five-game rubber, which is being tested by the BWF in the tournament.

In the fourth game, Kento managed to eke out a 4-0 lead but Sourabh soon reeled off six points to turn the tables, leading 7-4. The Indian then sealed the issue without much issue.