BIRMINGHAM: Olympic champion Lin Dan scored a notable revenge over Jan Jorgensen, the third-seeded Dane, to reach the semi-finals of the All-England Open with a 10-21, 21-9, 21-15 win on Friday but Indian star Saina Nehwal was knocked out of the women's event.
After turning the match round Lin got completely on top before Jorgensen injected a little late respectability into the score-line.
Lin's subtle manoeuvrings and softly masked disguises offered an indication of how much his preparations for the Olympics may already have raised his standard.
It was was atonement for a loss to Jorgensen in the world championships quarter-finals in Jakarta seven months ago, when Lin was well beaten in straight games.
"I took time to analyse Jorgensen's game after that defeat," Lin said.
"I tried to find better ways of beating him. I really like the way he plays -- it's aggressive and he can apply a lot of pressure -- but this was a good experience for me after the first game."
It also suggested that even at the age of 32, and despite very few tournament titles in the past three years, Lin may well be good enough to challenge for a third Olympic gold.
"I'm no longer young, but I still enjoy the competition, and the feeling of that," he said. "I'm really excited with the win."
He is surely now the unofficial favourite for his sixth All-England title with both Chen Long, the titleholder, and Lee Chong Wei, the former world number one, both being beaten.
He next plays Chen's conqueror, Xue Song, who played another fine match to cause an upset for the second successive day, overcoming Danish sixth seed Viktor Axelsen 21-19, 21-23, 21-11.
Though ranked as low as 30, Xue has been playing to a top ten standard, applying steady pressure, keeping a cool head, and attributing his good mental state to watching American horror movies.
"I'm really happy to play my teammate," said Lin. "It will be a different feeling altogether."
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