COPENHAGEN: Top seed Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia strolled into the quarter-finals of the men's singles at the badminton world championships on Thursday as women's title-holder Ratchanok Intanon suffered a shock loss.Lee, bidding for an elusive maiden world title after consecutive runner-up finishes, faced little resistance from third-round opponent Scott Evans of Ireland as he raced to a 21-11, 21-12 win."I just focused on myself, taking things easy to prepare for tomorrow (Friday)," said the world number one, who will encounter Chinese sixth seed Wang Zhengming, a 21-15, 21-18 winner over Hong Kong's Wei Nan, with a place in the last four at stake.
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"Tomorrow will be tough. (Wang) has played very well so far, he's an accomplished player but I will focus on myself."I'm still not 100 percent but I hope tomorrow will be better," added Lee, referring to a persistent groin injury that sidelined him for two months prior to this tournament.
His path to the final was made easier following the retirement of Danish third seed Jan O Jorgensen, who was forced to pull out when trailing unseeded Chou Tien-chen of Taiwan 21-9, 9-4.Jorgensen's coach said the world number three had suffered a torn patella tendon in his right knee early in the match and attempts to patch up the home favourite proved unsuccessful.
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"I'm very upset. I would prefer losing rather than not being able to play. Not being able to give a fight is worse," said a visibly distraught Jorgensen.
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"My whole dream of winning, of playing, burst so fast because I knew it was not a small thing."China's Chen Long, seeded second, progressed 21-12, 21-10 over India's K. Srikanth and will meet South Korean seventh seed Son Wan-ho, who knocked off Danish number two Hans-Kristian Vittinghus, in the last eight.Indonesian fifth seed Tommy Sugiarto eased past Hong Kong's Hu Yun 21-10, 21-11 while lone remaining Dane Viktor Axelsen, the 14th seed, and Dutchman Eric Pang also reached the quarters.There was a huge surprise in the women's draw as defending champion Intanon crashed out in the third round after the 19-year-old succumbed to Japanese 16th seed Minatsu Mitani 8-21, 21-12, 21-18."She was quicker and faster in the second game. She made me nervous by defending my smashes so well. I was getting tired after long rallies," said Intanon, who explained that she had spent five days in hospital prior to the tournament with a temperature that peaked at 39.5 degrees Celsius (103.1 degrees Fahrenheit)."I couldn't play at 100 percent just four days after leaving hospital. I was only around 50 percent," said the 2013 champion.
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Mitani's reward is a quarter-final against Korean fifth seed Sung Ji-hyun.China's Wang Yihan, the 2011 champion, also suffered a stunning defeat as she was ruthlessly taken apart by Spanish ninth seed Carolina Marin 21-9, 21-12.-AFP
