DAKAR, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- Top two seeds Ryuusei Kawakami of Japan and Emanuel Otalvaro of Colombia will face off for the men's singles gold medal at the Dakar Youth Olympic Games on Thursday after winning their respective semifinals.
U17 world No. 1 Kawakami overcame Lee Seung-soo 4-2 in a 51-minute semifinal. He took the opening game 11-6 before losing a closely contested second game 20-18. Kawakami then regained control, winning the next games 11-7 and dropping the fifth 11-2. He then closed out the match with 11-7, 11-3.
Known for his high-toss serves, Otalvaro defeated Li Ki Ho of Hong Kong, China, 4-1 (11-6, 11-7, 9-11, 11-6, 11-7) to secure his place in the final. ■