Spanish badminton star Carolina Marin moves into Hong Kong Open quarterfinals

(Correction: corrects ranking/seeds in the first two graphs)

Sports Desk, Sep 14 (EFE).- Three-times world badminton champion Carolina Marin of Spain on Thursday entered the quarterfinals of the Hong Kong Open after getting past German Yvonne Li in the round of 16.

Marin, runner-up at the recent badminton world championship and seeded third in Hong Kong, defeated Li in three sets, three years after winning her last and only match against the German player in the Denmark Open semifinals.

This time Marin needed one hour and eleven minutes to get the better of her opponent.

Li played with great accuracy in the first set and led the points almost throughout except the beginning. Despite a tight finish, the German took the set 21-18.

However, Marin – Olympic, world and European champion in the past – would not let Li cause an upset.

She went head to head with Li in the second set until 12-12 and then assumed control to win it 21-14.

In the third set, the Spanish player dominated from the beginning. She took a 5-0 lead and although the German staged a comeback (8-6), Marin bounced back to win the set 21-11 and the match 2-1.

The Spanish player will now face Indonesia’s no. 5 seed Gregoria Mariska Tunjung in the quarterfinals.

Tunjung defeated Singapore’s Yeo Jia Min in straight sets (21-11, 21-18) in their round-of-16 match. EFE

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