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HYDERABAD, India: World number one Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia and
defending champion Lin Dan of China stormed into the men’s singles
second round of the World badminton championships here on Monday
(Tuesday in Manila). Top-seeded Lee faced a stiff resistance from
116th-ranked German Dieter Domke in the opening game before winning
21-14, 21-10, while fifth-seeded Lin raced to a 21-9, 21-11 victory
over unseeded Israeli Misha Zilberman.
“I made some unforced errors in the opening
game,” said Lee, aiming to win his maiden world crown.
“I played him for the first time and took some
time to settle down, but I am happy with my form.”
Two-time champion Lin proved too strong for
Zilberman, completing the win in just 23 minutes.
“I don’t consider myself as a favorite. I
think Denmark’s Peter Gade and Lee are favorites,” said Lin,
looking for his third successive title.
Lin and Gade are expected to clash in the
quarterfinals.Third-seeded Gade and sixth-seeded Indonesian Sony Dwi
Kuncoro also moved into the men’s singles second round with
emphatic wins.Dicky Palyama of the Netherlands pulled off the
tournament’s first upset when he defeated 11th-seeded Chinese Bao
Chun Lai in the opening round.
“There was no pressure on me and I played
freely,” Palyama said after posting a 21-18, 21-14 victory.
Bao conceded he was not at his best.
-- AFP
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