Korea Masters 2024: Kiran George Sees Off 5th Seed Takuma Obayashi in Straight Games to Reach Semi-Final

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India's Kiran George continued his winning run with a straight games victory over fifth seed Takuma Obayashi of Japanese to reach the semifinals of the ongoing Korea Masters 2024 badminton tournament in Iksan, South Korea.

World number 44 George upstaged the 34th ranked Japanese with a scoreline of 21-14, 21-16 in the men's singles quarterfinal match that lasted 39 minutes on court 3 at the Iksan Gymnasium.

George, the lone Indian shuttler competing in the tournament, was in control of the match throughout. After 1-1 scoreline, he was always in the lead in the first game.

When George zoomed to 15-6 lead, Obayashi made a brief resistance, closing down the gap to 12-16. But that was all the Japanese could do as George notched four straight points to take the first game.

The second game was a much closer affair as the duo breathed down each other's neck. George was initially 7-3 ahead but Obayashi fought back to make it 8-8.

After that, it was a neck-and-neck contest. But from 17-16, George grabbed four straight points to seal the second game and the match to seal his last four spot in the BWF Super 300 tournament.

Following the win, George set up a meeting with Thailand's top seed and world number five Kunlavut Vitidsarn, who won his quarterfinal match 21-15 21-11 against Liu Liang of China. Now George and Vitidsarn are set for their fourth meeting in the semifinals on Saturday (November 9).

The Indian George had beaten third seed Chi Yu Jen of Chinese Taipei in the pre-quarterfinals after seeing off Vietnam's Kuan Lin Kuo. George produced a gritty performance to eke out a three-game win by a scoreline of 15-21, 21-12, 21-15 in a 57-minute opening round clash.

In the second round contest that lasted 75 minutes, the Indian registered a hard-fought win, seeing off the world number 31 from Chinese Taipei in three games 21-17, 19-21, 21-17.