Malaysia edged out South Korea 3-2 at the Thomas Cup world team championship in Kunshan to be seeded in Quarter Finals

Badminton: Malaysian men survive scare, women crash out

AFP

Lee Chong Wei's Malaysian squad survived a nail-biting showdown with Asian rivals South Korea at the Thomas Cup in China Tuesday, after the national women's team crashed out of the concurrent Uber Cup in a tight clash with Denmark.

The world number three led the charge as Malaysia edged out South Korea 3-2 at the world team championship in Kunshan to finish as the top seed from their grouping ahead of the quarter-finals later this week.

The day did not start off promisingly for the Koreans with world number three Lee pushing past ninth ranked Son Wan-Ho in straight sets.

The Koreans were able to rally with doubles squads Lee Yong Dae and Yoo Yeon Seong, and Kim Gi-jung and Kim Sa-rang, prevailing in back-to-back wins.

But the Malaysians' depth on the singles front won the day with Chong Wei Feng besting South Korea's Jeon Hyeok-jin 21-16, 21-16.

The five-time Thomas Cup champs are aiming to break their 24-year drought at the tournament.

In Uber action, the Malaysian women's squad failed to stir a similar resurgence against Denmark, allowing the Danes to clinch a spot in the quarters after the closely contested 3-2 battle.

In the deciding singles match of the tie, Anne Thea Madsen sent the Malaysians crashing out of the tournament with a 22-24, 21-13, 21-13 win over Ho Yen Mei.

"I was quite fresh despite losing the first game," said Madsen in comments posted by the Badminton World Federation. "I could see she was a bit tired."

Both competitions feature 16 teams divided into four groups, with the top two in each qualifying for the quarter-finals.

Thomas Cup: 'Team king' Wei Feng delivers in gripping win over South Korea

THE STAR

Wei Feng has a good point to silence his critics as he delivered the winning point against South Korea in Group C of the Thomas Cup Finals in Kunshan. - CHAN BOON KAI / The Star

KUNSHAN (China): Malaysia achieved their objective of topping Group C after beating South Korea 3-2 in the Thomas Cup Finals at the Kunshan Sports Centre Gymnasium on Tuesday. 

The Malaysian team rode on the singles players, who provided all three points while the strategy to put scratch pairings in the doubles failed. 

Lee Chong Wei started the ball rolling by beating Son Wan-ho 21-18, 21-15. 

The scratch pair of Koo Kien Keat-Goh V Shem were outplayed by world No. 1 combination of Lee Yong-dae-Yoo Yeon-seong 16-21, 11-21. 

However, Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin restored the advantage in Malaysia's court by beating Lee Dong-keun 21-17, 21-15. 

The Koreans came back strongly to level 2-2 through Kim Ki-jung-Kim Sa-rang, who edged Tan Boon Heong-Tan Wee Kiong 21-14, 24-22. 

It was up to seasoned campaigner Chong Wei Feng to provide the winning point, and he duly delivered by beating Jeon Hyeok-jin 21-16, 21-16 in the decisive third singles match.    

Malaysia, who defeated England 4-1 and Germany 5-0, will go into the knockout stages as one of the top four seeds.