China Masters: Japan’s Yuuka Miyazaki stuns world No. 2 to reach final

Yuuka Miyazaki fought back from 19-15 down in the opening game, then held her nerve through two match points in the second. The world No. 9 Japanese player defeated China’s world No. 2 Wang Zhiyi 21-19, 23-21 at the China Masters to reach her first women’s singles final of the season.

The victory gives Miyazaki a chance to win her first title of the year and her first on the Super 750 circuit. She had previously reached the China Open Super 1000 final in 2024, where Wang beat her to take the title. Before this match, Miyazaki had a 1-3 record against Wang.

Miyazaki said she felt “full of joy and happiness” after the match. She said she had spent time reflecting on her weaknesses after exiting the world championships in the round of 16, and described determination as the key to her win.

Wang praised Miyazaki’s speed and her control of the match tempo, saying the Japanese player had performed extremely well. Miyazaki’s final opponent will be South Korea’s An Se-young, who has won all seven of their previous meetings.

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Full of joy and happiness.