Yuichi Shimogami and Sayaka Hobara will contest the biggest match of their partnership when they step onto court for the KFF Singapore Open 2026 semifinals today.

The Japanese duo booked their last four place after producing arguably the most thrilling match of the quarterfinals – a 21-19 21-23 21-16 upset over the second-seeded defending champions Dechapol Puavaranukroh/Supissara Paewsampran. It was their first victory over the Thai pair after two previous defeats.

The drama heightened in the second game when Shimogami/Hobara held match point at 21-20, only to see the opportunity slip. Lesser pairs might have unravelled after surrendering that way but the world No.18s regrouped impressively to dominate the decider and seal victory in 69 pulsating minutes.

Shimogami/Hobara became a permanent fixture on the HSBC BWF World Tour only last year. Their run in Singapore already guarantees the best finish of their partnership, eclipsing last season’s Taipei Open semifinal at Super 300 level.

Impressively, the pair have now defeated three world top 10 combinations in the last three weeks – including Tang Chun Man/Tse Ying Suet at the Thailand Open and All England champions Ye Hong Wei/Nicole Gonzales Chan in the first round here on Tuesday.

Shimogami revealed tactical adjustments proved decisive against Puavaranukroh/Paewsampran.

“We lost twice to them before, so we discussed creating a faster, flatter game instead of lifting too much for Dechapol to smash,” said Shimogami. “We succeeded in executing that plan.”

Hobara credited her partner’s control for allowing her to thrive at the net.

“When they started taking a few points, I thought, ‘Is this going to become another difficult match?’” she said. “But from the beginning, Shimogami kept the shuttle low and fast, so I wasn’t forced into defence too often. I could focus completely on controlling the front court.”

The breakthrough means even more because the pair had repeatedly fallen just short of the semifinals.

“We’ve been getting close and now that we’ve finally achieved it, we are incredibly happy,” Hobara added. “But we want to keep going further.”

Standing in their way are Indians Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto, who also advanced to their first Super 750 semifinal after Toh Ee Wei retired injured in their quarterfinal clash.

→ Results (Quarterfinals)

→ Order of play (Semifinals)

WHAT OTHERS SAID

“She twisted her knee and was in pain. I told her not to put too much pressure on herself, that the most important thing was her physical condition. It is what it is, this isn’t what she wanted either.” – Toh’s partner Chen Tang Jie explaining her injury

“I’m happy. It makes it even more meaningful to win a Super 750 quarterfinal in Singapore. I’m just going to prepare myself the best for the semis.” – Loh Kean Yew after matching his best result at his home tournament

“It wasn’t an easy match. In the second game, Goh was very aggressive at the front but in the third we did not give in because we could not afford to lose out on the net shots.” – Fajar Alfian after he and Muhammad Shohibul Fikri defeated Goh Sze Fei/Nur Izzuddin 21-18 10-21 21-14