French Open: Popov Makes History
Christo Popov became the first home men's singles player to reach the French Open semifinals in the SuperSeries era, sweeping aside Chi Yu Jen 21-13 21-7 on Friday.
· BWF STAFF
From the opening exchanges at the Glaz Arena, Popov was in the driving seat, maintaining a good cushion of points throughout each game that allowed him to dictate proceedings. His opponent's attempts to force a comeback only played into the Frenchman's hands.
"I was a bit more aggressive and accurate. He made some mistakes and tried to get back into it because I was leading for most of the match," Popov explained.
A brief fightback from the Chinese Taipei shuttler at the start of the second game proved nothing more than a false dawn as Popov quickly reasserted his authority. Playing in front of a passionate home crowd provided the perfect fuel for Popov's fire.