NEW DELHI: Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie held his nerve in a tense semi-final to beat former world champion Loh Kean Yew and storm into the men’s singles final of the Yonex-Sunrise India Open 2026, while world No 1 An Se Young set up a women’s singles title clash against China’s Wang Zhi Yi at the KD Jadhav Indoor Stadium on Saturday.
In a gripping 46-minute contest, third seed Christie recovered from a slow start to defeat eighth seed Loh 21-18, 22-20 and extend his head-to-head dominance over the Singaporean to 9-0. Christie will now face either Canada’s Victor Lai or Chinese Taipei’s Lin Chun-Yi in Sunday’s final.
Loh began aggressively, racing to an 11-5 lead in the opening game with sharp smashes and quick finishes.
However, Christie changed gears after the interval, drawing his opponent into longer rallies and forcing errors with solid defence. A six-point burst brought him level at 15-15, and precise net play combined with well-timed down-the-line smashes helped him clinch the opener.
The second game followed a similar pattern. Loh regained control midway to open up a 17-13 cushion by keeping Christie away from the front court. But the Indonesian responded with quick, calculated attacks, saved pressure points and sealed the match on his second match point.
“In the second game, when Loh started coming back, I stayed calm, adapted better and managed to close it out,” Christie said after the win.
In the women’s singles, An Se Young produced a clinical performance to overpower former champion Ratchanok Intanon 21-11, 21-7. The Korean dominated with relentless speed and accuracy to book her place in the final.
She will meet China’s Wang Zhi Yi, who edged compatriot and Olympic champion Chen Yu Fei 21-15, 23-21 in a tight semifinal that featured long rallies and fine tactical exchanges.
Elsewhere, top Chinese pair Liu Sheng Shu and Tan Ning fought past Korea’s Baek Ha Na and Lee So Hee in three games to reach the women’s doubles final, while Japan’s Yuki Fukushima and Mayu Matsumoto upset second seeds Pearly Tan and Thinaah Muralitharan.
In mixed doubles, Thailand’s Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Supissara Paewsampran stunned top seeds Feng Yan Zhe and Huang Dong Ping in three games to advance to the title round.