BIRMINGHAM, Britain, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Third seed Chen Yufei beat Japan's Nozomi Okuhara here on Saturday to become the first player from Team China in four years to enter the women's singles final at the All England Open badminton championships.

The 20-year-old saw off tenacious challenge from the 2016 champion Okuhara in the first set but dominated the second for a 21-17, 21-11 vicotry. It was her first time to reach a final in a Superseries event.

Chen is the first player from Team China in the women's singles final since Wang Shixian was beaten by Okuhara in 2016. She would also become the first champion from Team China in five years should she dethrone two-time defending champion Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei.

In 2014, Wang Shixian lifted the trophy with a victory over teammate Li Xuerui.