Mixed doubles world No. 1 Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong of China powered into the semifinals of the 2023 BWF China Masters on Friday.
Top seeds Zheng and Huang eased past their teammates Jiang Zhenbang and Wei Yaxin 21-12, 21-6 to advance. They will take on compatriots Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping, who fought hard to beat Kim Won-ho and Jeong Na-eun of South Korea 21-16, 22-20.
World champions Seo Seung-jae and Chae Yu-jung of South Korea rallied to defeat the young Chinese pair Cheng Xing and Chen Fanghui 16-21, 21-18, 21-17.
"They are tough players. We really hoped to take the second game after winning the first one, but we were too anxious. Maybe that's why we finally lost the match," said Cheng.
In the women's singles, Chinese shuttlers booked three spots in the last four, as Chen Yufei, Han Yue, and Wang Zhiyi defeated their opponents respectively. South Korea's Kim Ga-eun secured another berth after eliminating Vietnam's Thuy Linh Nguyen 21-19, 21-10.
"Beating An Se-young (on Thursday) and Nozomi Okuhara (on Friday) makes me feel very released. I will always try my best to get the next victory," said Wang after a 60-minute competition with Japan's Okuhara.
The men's singles quarterfinals saw three Japanese players enter the last four, with Kanta Tsuneyama, Kodai Naraoka, and Kenta Nishimoto all claiming straight-set wins.
Home favorites Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan enjoyed a speedy victory in the women's doubles quarterfinals, while fellow Chinese Liang Weikeng and Wang Chang, the men's doubles world No. 1, overcame Tokyo Olympic champions Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin of Chinese Taipei to progress.