Lingshui: In the thrilling 2023 China Badminton Super League (CBSL) semi-final tie between the Ruichang team and the Shenzhen team, it went all the way down to the wire before Mohammad Ahsan/Li Junhui pulled off a huge comeback to beat World No. 9 Liang Wei Keng/Wang Chang 6-11, 11-4, 11-8, 12-14, 11-5 to lift Ruichang to the 2023 China Badminton Super League (CBSL) final.
“I didn’t really communicate with Ahsan on the game tactic and strategies prior to the match. But I’ve played him before at international tournaments, I know his playing style, and I was just trying to adapt and follow his rhythm during the match,” said Li after the men’s doubles win.
Highlights of Mohammad Ahsan/Li Junhui vs. Liang Wei Keng/Wang Chang At the 2023 China Badminton Super League (CBSL) semi-final:
The men’s doubles victory was Li Junhui’s second win over Liang Wei Keng on the same tie. Earlier, Li Junhui kicked off the tie in the mixed doubles match partnering Liu Xuanxuan and they beat Liang Wei Keng/Zhang Shuxian 7-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-7 to give the Ruichang team a 1-0 lead.
In the second match, the women’s singles World No. 5 He Bingjiao fought fiercely against World No. 16 Zhang Yiman for nearly 50 minutes before winning 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 11-5, extending Ruichang’s lead to 2-0.
Not too long after winning the women’s singles match, He returned to the court again to compete in the women’s doubles match with Liu Xuanxuan. However, the World No. 3 pair – Zheng Yu/Zhang Shuxian of Shenzhen proved too strong as they beat He/Liu 8-11, 12-10, 12-10, 11-5 to narrow the overall score for Shenzhen at 1-2.
“I actually didn’t play well, especially during the critical moments. I didn’t handle the serve and return well. But Xuanxuan always encouraged me. This is something you can’t feel in singles because you have a partner by your side, and we are winning and losing together,” said He after she lost the women’s doubles match.
In the fourth men’s singles match-up, Shenzhen’s World No. 108 Sun Feixiang drew level for his team at 2-2 by beating Ruichang’s World No. 20 Li Shifeng 11-6, 5-11, 11-8, 11-3.
Of course, with the win of Mohammad Ahsan/Li Junhui in the men’s doubles match, Ruichang managed to roar past Shenzhen 3-2 to set up a final encounter with the Xiamen team.
