Justin hits back at old foe to make historic Macau semis
The world No. 45 delivered a confident performance to oust Thailand's world No. 54 Kantaphon Wangcharoen 21-9, 21-18 in the quarter-finals, a result that secured his biggest run yet on the World Tour.
It also avenged his defeat to the 2019 World Championships bronze medallist at last year's Korea Masters.
Justin was in complete control in the opening game, racing ahead from the start to leave no room for a fightback.
The second game proved more competitive, but the 21-year-old Malaysian remained composed under pressure to close it out in straight games.
Having reached the quarter-finals at the Taiwan Open in each of the past two years, Justin finally broke new ground in Macau and will now be hoping to take another step forward.
He will next face another surprise semi-finalist in India's world No. 47 Tharun Mannepalli, who has enjoyed a dream run in Macau. Tharun shocked top seed Lee Cheuk Yiu of Hong Kong in the last 16 before going on to defeat China's reigning world junior champion Hu Zhe An 21-12, 13-21, 21-18 in the quarter-finals,
On paper, the clash between Justin and Tharun appears evenly matched, with both players looking to make their first-ever World Tour final.
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