Canada Open: Home Hope Lai Creates Sensation
World No.72 Victor Lai stunned second seed Kodai Naraoka to make the final of the YONEX Canada Open 2025 – his first final on the HSBC BWF World Tour.
· BWF STAFF
The 20-year-old Canadian outplayed the world No.7 in a marathon 98 minutes, winning the thriller 21-19 16-21 21-17.
Lai, who has had a breakout year winning the Pan Am Championships, will be up against another Japanese, Kenta Nishimoto, in the final.
The other semifinal too went the distance, with Nishimoto holding off Kidambi Srikanth 19-21 21-14 21-18 in 78 minutes.