Badminton: Chinese Keep Shining. 

BY Dr. ABDUL RUFF

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China, the Asian super power and top  sport people, is the topper in Badminton too. China showcased its brilliance in badminton in Birmingham as the titles of both men and women were won by the Chinese.

Lin Dan of China won his fifth All England title on 11 Feb Sunday when world number one Lee Chong Wei had to retire with a shoulder injury that had emerged over the last 24 hours.  The score stood at 21-19 6-2 to Lin when the Malaysian had to call it a day.

The Malaysian Datuk was perhaps the clear favorite for a third successive All England title, a feat no men's singles player had achieved since Rudy Hartono, the Indonesian master of 38 years ago.

Malaysian Lee Chong Wei's record bid thwarted by injury as Lin Dan wins fifth title. There was to be no record, no congratulatory phone call from the Malaysian prime minister. Chinese pin-up Lin Dan won his fifth All England men's singles title on Sunday against Lee Chong Wei, but only after his chief rival from Malaysia was forced to retire with a shoulder injury in Birmingham.

There had been some doubt whether Chong Wei would even start the final but he appeared on time to the delight of a near capacity 8,000 crowd at the National Indoor Arena. But he needed treatment 15 minutes into the match when trailing 15-12 and again at the break after the first game. Then it soon became clear early in the second set he could not carry on and the two men shook hands after 31 minutes. Lin, the Olympic and world champion, told the crowd: "I hope the injury does not affect him too much and we can meet at the Olympics again."

Both defend with remarkable agility - which the packed Birmingham crowd had earlier witnessed to superb effect in a men's doubles thriller - while their speed and net play made sure of a 28th meeting. Lin has now prevailed in 19 of those encounters. Despite their obvious ferocity on court, a unique bond exists between these two players off it, summed up when the two swapped shirts "on the spur of the moment" over the net, to the delight of the thousands of spectators and  home  watchers.

China’s Li Xuerui is the woman champion. When Li Xuerui, world’s 7^th, sent India’s Saina packing from All-England Open Badminton Championships 2012in the quarter finals, it did not exactly signal she would eventually clinch the title too. Earlier, Saina couldn't simply match Li in the first game as she failed to retrieve quite a few shots in the forecourt and most of her smashes went into the net. The Indian also failed to read the conditions and fell prey to the drift as she made quite a few judgment errors. Li, on the other hand, played an aggressive game and her strokes were more accurate. The world No 5 Chinese opened up a 2-0 lead and went into the break 11-8. After the breather, things didn't change much as Li reeled off seven straight points to create a huge gap which Saina failed to bridge. The Chinese was more accurate and deceptive as she moved ahead. The sideway drift saw both the players succumbing to some unforced errors, but Li had her nose ahead at 19-17 and with Saina hitting out once again, the Chinese went up 20-17 for match-point. Pushed to the wall, Saina not only saved three match-points but also grabbed the lead at 21-20. However, the Chinese wrested control and led 22-21 and won a long rally to eventually seal the match.

Lin had said before the final that he didn't care who won the showdown everyone was hoping for. But the world and Olympic champion clearly showed compassion when the world No 1 offered his hand when 21-19 and 6-2 down in the second game.

Some will now see Chong Wei's defeat as another psychological dagger ahead of an anticipated Olympic final date later this summer. "We know each other very well," said a jubilant Lin. "We have been playing together since we were juniors. He has made my career more successful.

Chong Wei, who lost out to his rival in a thrilling World Championships final at Wembley last summer, has had the measure of his opponent in recent months on the world tour. Lin, though, wins the pivotal matches when it matters.

It is presumed that Chong Wei will retire after the Olympics. The Malaysian will now make sure of a full recovery before a final tilt at the biggest accolode.