China's Lin Dan returns to Dutchman Eric Pang during their match at the BWF World Championships in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province on Wednesday. Photo: IC

Chinese badminton superstar Lin Dan breezed through his second-round match against Dutch player Eric Pang in the world championships in ­Guangzhou on Wednesday, winning 21-14, 21-17, leaving him on a collision course for a final against world No.1 Lee Chong Wei.

Olympic and world champion Lin, who has spent most of this year on the sidelines to have time with his family, was rarely stretched by Pang, ­controlling the court and injecting pace when he needed.

No.2 seed Chen Long, also of ­China, was given a tougher challenge by ­Japanese veteran Sho Sasaki, winning 21-15, 21-12 after a lackluster start which saw him go 6-10 down in the first game.

Chen is on course to meet Lin in the quarterfinals if both survive their third-round matches.

Top-ranked women's singles seed Li Xuerui of China, who took gold at the London Games, strolled to victory in her first game of the tournament, beating Ukraine's Marija Ulitina 21-9, 21-10.

Current women's singles world champion, China's Wang Yihan, beat ­Indonesia's Belaetrix Manuputi 21-12, 21-8.

Reigning women's doubles world champions Wang Xiaoli and Yu Yang and No.2 seeds Ma Jing and Tang Jinhua also went through to the third round.

Men's world No.1 Lee was forced to fight for his place in the tournament in a thrilling battle with an unseeded ­opponent.

Spectators in Guangzhou were left stunned as they watched the Malaysian - Lin's arch-rival - lose the first game 14-21 to Dionysius Hayom ­Rumbaka of Indonesia, who is ranked 26th in the world.

Rumbaka had met Lee five times and never beaten him, but he showed no sign of nerves, repeatedly forcing him to the net with drop shots which took the pace out of the Malaysian's game.

Lee looked increasingly rattled and murmurs of disbelief rippled around the Tianhe Gymnasium, as he went behind in the second game. The pair traded smashes and body shots, but Lee ­recovered to take the ­second game 21-18 before winning the third 21-11, hitting his attacking stride in the final points.

"I couldn't find my pace, especially in the first game," Lee told reporters.

"Today has been a reminder that I have to get more prepared for the ­coming matches so I can perform ­better."

Lee, 30, is gunning for Malaysia's first-ever world title, on the back of wins this year in South Korea, Indonesia, ­India and Malaysia, with fans hoping for another classic clash with Lin.

AFP - Global Times