Chen Long of China returns the shuttlecock to Lin Dan of China during the men's singles second round match at All England Open Badminton Championships 2020 in Birmingham, Britain on March 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Tim Ireland)
Reigning Olympic champion Chen Long won All-Chinese encounter with legendary teammate Lin Dan at the All England Open badminton championships.
LONDON, March 12 (Xinhua) -- China's reigning Olympic champion Chen Long ousted legendary teammate Lin Dan on Thursday to reach the men's singles quarterfinals at the All England Open Badminton Championships in Birmingham.
Lin Dan (R) returns the shuttlecock to Chen Long during the men's singles second round match at All England Open Badminton Championships 2020 in Birmingham, Britain on March 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Tim Ireland)
Lin, 36, is no longer the hot favorite at the All England Open where he clinched six titles. He edged Thai teenager Kunlavut Vitidsarn in three games in the first round but failed to match the world number 5 Chen as he lost 21-17, 21-8 in straight games on Thursday.
"Lin is always the best player, so I always treasure each time I play with him," Chen said.
Chou Tien Chen of Chinese Taipei returns the shuttlecock to Tsuneyama Kanta of Japan during the men's singles second round match at All England Open Badminton Championships 2020 in Birmingham, Britain on March 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Tim Ireland)
In another second round matchup, world number 1 Chou Tien Chen from Chinese Taipei fought hard to edge his Japanese opponent Kanta Tsuneyama 19-21, 26-24, 21-13.
"I did not predict that I would play such a long game, especially during the second set," said Chou. "I am treating this as a warm-up before the Olympics and I hope I could get as many points as I can before going to Japan."
Chen Yufei competes during the women's singles second round match with Thailand's Busanan Ongbamrungphan at the All England Open Badminton Championships in Birmingham, Britain, on March 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Tim Ireland)
In the women's singles, defending champion Chen Yufei set up an encounter with Thai ace Ratchanok Intanon after beating another Thai player Busanan Ongbamrungphan 21-17, 21-13.
Olympic champion Carolina Marin from Spain defeated China's Wang Zhiyi in straight games. The eighth seed will face Japan's Akane Yamaguchi in the quarterfinals. ■
