India's Sameer Verma entered the final of the Hong Kong Open in style after registering a 21-19, 24-22 win over third-seeded Jan O Jorgensen on Saturday. The match lasted 46 minutes.
This is the first time Verma, 22, has made it to the final of a Superseries event. He will take on Hong Kong's NG Ka Long Angus on Sunday in the third match on Coliseum 1, where play starts at 11.30 am IST.
Verma started well and controlled the game from the front of the court and surged to an 8-4 lead. But he then struggled with his smashes and allowed Jorgensen to level the score at 10-10.
The first game remained a tight affair till the end with Verma having to show great retrieving skills to keep up with the player from Denmark. Verma had three game points after he opened up a 20-17 lead. He managed to close the game 21-19 when Jorgensen hit a shuttle long. The game lasted 21 minutes.
Jorgensen raced ahead in the second game with a flurry of smashes from the back of the court to lead 7-1. He led 11-5 at the changeover.
But there was a shift in momentum soon after as Verma won eight of the next nine points to lead 13-12. Jorgensen dug deep and brought all his experience into play by forcing Verma to go for the sidelines, securing three game points while leading 20-17.
However, Verma won the next four points to secure a match point. He eventually won the match on his second match-point opportunity, winning the second game 24-22 in 24 minutes.
Verma, who is currently ranked 43rd in the world, was playing in the semi-final of a Superseries event for the first time. He had beaten Malaysia's Chong Wei Feng 21-17, 23-21 in the quarterfinals. He had qualified for the main draw after Jonathan Christie pulled out with an injury just before the tournament.
Verma had also made the semi-finals at the Bitburger Open, which was his best performance this year till now. He also won the Senior National Championships in April this year.
World No. 3 Jorgensen, who had won the China Open last week, had never faced Verma before.