Fullerton: Former world number one Kidambi Srikanth reached his first final of the year with a hard-fought win over Japan’s Yudai Okimoto in the men’s semifinals of the US Open Badminton tournament here on Sunday (IST). The 33-year-old got the better of fourth seed Okimoto 22-20, 15-21, 21-19 in an hour and 12 minutes. Srikanth kept his nerve in the opening game after Okimoto had fought back from an 11-17 deficit to earn a game point. The Indian saved the point and won the next two to take the advantage. The Japanese shuttler, however, forced a decider with a strong showing in the second game. The final game followed a similar script to the first as Srikanth opened up a 10-5 lead only for Okimoto to draw level at 12-all. Srikanth then pocketed six straight points, 12-13, before conceding five himself to make it 18-all. The Indian then relied on his experience to mix up the pace and wrap up the match. IANS