Shenyang: Two-time Olympic champion Lin Dan secured a vital win for Guangzhou in the sixth leg of China Badminton Super League (CBSL) on Wednesday. The victory was the first for Guangzhou in the 2016/2017 CBSL season.
Guangzhou’s Zhong Qianxin/Ou Dongni were broken but rebounded immediately on both sets to give Guangzhou a 1-0 lead after defeating Liaoning team’s An Yu/Zheng Yuwen 21-19, 21-19 in the women’s doubles match.
A week after dispatching Rio Olympic champion Chen Long in the China Badminton Super League tie between Guangzhou and Qingdao, Lin Dan continued his undefeated run in the CBSL by shaking off some nerves and rust to take control and bounce back from a one set deficit to beat his former sparring partner in the China national team – Zhou Wenlong of Liaoning 16-21, 23-21, 18-11. Zhou suffered muscle cramps and had to retire before the end of third set.
“I think Zhou Wenlong played very well today. It’s going to be hard to play against him again in tournament like this. As you can see, he fought very hard and suffered muscle cramps,” said Lin Dan after the match.
Shin Baek-Cheol/Zhong Qianxin then needed 43 minutes to put Guangzhou at a 3-0 advantage when they got the better of Liaoning’s Wang Zekang/An Yu 21-18, 21-19. Although Guangzhou lost the women’s singles and men’s doubles matches that followed, that didn’t stop them from winning their first victory of the season.
Meanwhile, Chen Long was delighted and relieved after he came through a grueling 3-set thriller to beat Guo Kai of Zhejiang team 21-13, 14-21, 21-8. Chen Long’s Qingdao team concluded Wednesday with a 4-1 over Zhejiang.
