All England Badminton Live Updates, Semi-Finals

Gopichand’s daughter Gayatri and Treesa raise India’s All-England hopes
Gayatri Gopichand Pullela and Treesa Jolly beat Chinese pair Li Wei and Liu Xuan Xuan 21-14, 18-21, 21-12 on Friday. (Photo : AP )
Gayatri Gopichand Pullela and Treesa Jolly have had contrasting lives. Gayatri’s father runs a state-of-the-art badminton academy in Hyderabad and is credited with producing the country’s most-decorated shuttlers. Treesa’s father built her a mud court at Pulingome village in Kannur and switched to a tarpaulin surface when it rained.
Their varied journeys notwithstanding, on Friday, Treesa, 19, and Gayatri, 20, made it to their second successive All-England semi-final beating Chinese Li Wei and Liu Xuan Xuan 21-14, 18-21, 21-12. The Indians rained down flat attacking shots on the Chinese, though there were enough delectable drops and half smashes to hint at Indian mastery of touch-play. [Read more]