CHONG WEI MAKES SEMIS, LIN DAN CRASHES OUT
Jorgensen stuns China’s five-time world champion to reach semis
SHAH ALAM: There will be no Lee Chong Wei-Lin Dan semi-final showdown at the Celcom Axiata Malaysian Open badminton championships.
Denmark’s Jan O Jorgensen played the role of party pooper by packing off five-time world champion Lin Dan of China with an impressive 21-17, 21-4 quarter-final win in just 32 minutes at the Malawati Stadium last night.
Chong Wei kept his side of the bargain by packing off sixth seed Viktor Axelsen with an emphatic 21-14, 21-13 win.
The 32-year-old Lin Dan slammed the officials – chair umpire David Wang of Malaysia and service judge Chris Yep of Hong Kong – after the loss.
“The service judge didn’t penalise Jorgensen on several occasions although he committed service faults,” complained world No. 3 Lin Dan.
“I watched him in the secondmatch on Thursday (Jorgensen beat Iskandar Zulkarnain of Malaysia 21-7, 21-16) and he pulled the same trick too.
“Maybe there are double standards against Asian players. They are also extra strict against Chinese players.
“But a loss is a loss and I just need to do better next time. It is also a shame I won’t be able to face Chong Wei here, but there are many more tournaments to go,” added Lin Dan.
Jorgensen was delighted to secure his fifth win over Lin Dan in 13 meetings. It was sweet revenge for the Dane as he was beaten by Lin Dan in the last eight of last month’s All-England.
“I performed at a very high level today and I didn’t let Lin Dan into the game. Maybe Lin Dan gave up in the second game. But when you’re trailing so far behind, it’s usually very tough to come back.
“It feels good to get another win over a legend like Lin Dan. I am looking forward to facing Chong Wei in the semi-finals,” said Jorgensen.
Chong Wei has the psychological edge over Jorgensen, having won 14 times in 15 meetings.
But the 33-year-old Malaysia is not taking anything for granted.
“It’ll still going to be tough. I need to be prepared mentally and deal with the pressure well,” said the record 10-time Malaysian Open champion.
The other semi-final will be between defending champion and world No. 1 Chen Long and Indonesian youngster Jonatan Christie.
Chen Long outplayed compatriot Tian Houwei 21-16, 21-16 while 18-year-old Jonatan beat English veteran Rajiv Ouseph 21-19, 21-19.
The service judge didn’t penalise Jorgensen on several occasions although he committed service faults. lin Dan