It was an all India semi finals affair between Kidambi Srikanth and Ajay Jayaram, as they were fighting for a spot in the finals at the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold, where top seed Srikanth turned out victorious against his Indian counterpart at the St Jakobshalle stadium.
It was not an easy affair for the number one seed in the competition, as he was stretched to three sets by Jayaram, who had won the 2014 Dutch Open Grand Prix. The semis score read 17-21, 21-15, 21-18, which establishes the tight game that was at the offing that helped Srikanth reach the finals.
"It was a tough match and took three games. Jayaram played well. I am not thinking anymore about it. I am happy with this victory and reaching the final," said Srikanth, as quoted by The Times Of India.
But, the Indian will have to play a good game against his opponent in the finals, Viktor Axelsen from Denmark, also the defending champion.
He looked in superb form as he cruised past his Chinese opponent in less than 40 minutes in straight sets to set up a date with the Indian. The score read 21-16, 21-15.
If the Dane produces such stellar performances, Srikanth needs to up his game to clinch the title. The finals should be an interesting match-up between the two as well.
The Indian has been in tremendous form as he is presently ranked number four in the world, which also happens to be his highest ranking till date. He came into the limelight after his victory in the Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold, where he defeated Boonsak Ponsana.
Last year, Srikanth also won the China Open. Will he add the Swiss Open title in his bag as well?
The year 2014 was an impressive one for the Dane as well, as he won the Swiss Open defeating China's Tian Houwei in a thrilling encounter with the game going down to the wire, as the score read 21-7, 16-21 and 25-23.
If the match between Kidambi Srikanth and Viktor Axelsen happens to be on the level of last year's final, badminton fans around the world would be entertained to the hilt.
The Dane is currently ranked number 18 in the world, who also won the 2014 BWF World Championships.
Where to Watch Live
The coverage of the Swiss Open starts at 12pm local time (4:30pm IST, 7am ET, 11am GMT) with the mixed doubles finals between Lu Kai and Huang Yaqiong and liu Cheng and BAO Yixin, which will be followed by the mens singles final between Kidambi Srikanth and Viktor Axelsen.
Indian viewers can watch the action Live on Star Sports 2/HD, while people in Malaysia can watch it Live on Astro Super Sport 4.
Viewers around the world can watch it online HERE.
