The 22nd meeting between Tai Tzu Ying and Carolina Marin promises to be a true spectacle.

Sixth seed Marin advanced to the VICTOR Denmark Open 2023 quarterfinals, conquering Sung Shuo Yun in an intense Round of 16 clash that concluded 22-20 22-20 after 57 minutes of action. This marked the Spaniard’s first complete match in Odense following Gao Fang Jie‘s unfortunate retirement in the first round with the score at 11-8 in Marin’s favour. Tai defeated Busanan Ongbamrungphan 22-20 21-12.

Anticipating the showdown, which the fourth-seeded Tai leads 11-10, Marin, at 30 a year older than Tai, said: “We’ve faced each other many times, and it’s going to be a tough but also a thrilling battle to watch and play. I’m looking forward to giving my best on court.

“I didn’t play really well (against Sung) but it was important to fight until the end. This is what I need to keep doing but of course I’d like to have a better feeling.”

The very first encounter between Marin and Tai unfolded at the 2014 World Championships, where the former emerged victorious 19-21 21-19 21-11 in the quarterfinals. This year, the duo clashed three times and although Marin won two of those, Tai took the most recent one in the China Open quarterfinals last month.

Asked if she remembered their significant 2014 battle, Marin chuckled: “I have no idea when our first time was.

“But we’ve played many exciting matches, the last one a month ago where I lost in three. It was a good fight and I hope we can both show a great performance again.”

Tai expects a grand contest.

“Even though she had a serious injury and has been slowly coming back, her game is still really complete and she moves very fast on court,” said the world No.4.

→ Results (Day 3)

→ Order of play (Quarterfinals)

*Reporting in collaboration with Badminton Europe

WHAT OTHERS SAID:

“It’s been a while since I played in the quarterfinals at this level so I’m really satisfied. It’s also amazing to do it in front of this audience on home soil, they give me a lot of confidence in there.” – Rasmus Gemke

“We want to learn something from our matches and eliminate our weaknesses. We are a work in progress.” – Ye Hong Wei after he and Lee Chia Hsin stunned second seeds Yuta Watanabe/Arisa Higashino

“Focus is key. In Singapore, the longer the match went on, the more we lost concentration. This time, we cannot let that happen.” – Amallia Cahaya Pratiwi hoping she and Febriana Dwipuji Kusuma can avenge their Singapore Open Round of 16 defeat to Mayu Matsumoto/Wakana Nagahara

“Rest and recover well as soon as possible. Prepare my body and mind.” – Kenta Nishimoto on what he needs to do before facing Lee Zii Jia, who had an extra day rest following second round opponent Viktor Axelsen’s withdrawal