Wang Shixian and the Chinese women’s team steamrolled through Spain yesterday at the Uber Cup in China, dispatching the top ranked player and securing a quarter-final berth to boot.
 Spain struggled out of the gate with the tournament favourites, with world number number one Carolina Marin falling in a three-game tussle against sixth ranked Wang Shixian.
 Marin managed to keep Wang just at arm’s reach in the first set before ultimately falling in the next two games in an air tight 19-21, 21-18, 21-19 loss that clocked in at nearly 90 minutes.
 Following Marin’s loss, the Chinese pummelled the Spaniards, with Sun Yu and world number four Wang Yihan recording straight set wins in a half-hour to help complete the 5-0 rout.
 In afternoon play, Lee Chong Wei’s Malaysian squad survived a nail-biting showdown with Asian rivals South Korea in the Thomas Cup.
 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.
 “I’m glad because it’s been a while since I’ve played this well, I’m really satisfied,” said Chong Wei Feng following the match in comments posted by the Badminton World Federation.
 “The important thing is we’ve now qualified for the quarter-finals as group winners. However, the mission is far from over.”
 The five-time Thomas Cup champs are aiming to break their 24-year drought at the tournament.
 In earlier 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, according to BWF. “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.
 
Lin vows to ‘find rhythm’ after Thomas Cup scare
Chinese badminton legend Lin Dan, meanwhile, vowed to find his Thomas Cup “rhythm” after scrambling to salvage a three-game win over an unknown French opponent on Monday. The world number three described his opening match as “tough”, after dropping the first game to France’s Lucas Corvee before storming back to win 20-22, 21-14, 21-8.
 “I didn’t expect to win this match in such a tough way,” said Lin, according to Xinhua. “But it doesn’t mean that I played badly, this match will help me to get fit and find my rhythm.”
 Following the sub-par performance, the 32-year-old vowed to give his all during his eighth appearance at the team championships. “I will do my best,” the two-time Olympic gold medallist said.
 Despite Lin’s slow start, the Chinese men walloped the French national team 5-0, securing a spot in the tournament’s quarter-finals. After sweeping France and Mexico, the tournament favourites and home nation are set to square off with Japan today, where they’ll be hungry to avenge the shock 2014 defeat.
 The sport’s pre-eminent nation were stunned two years ago in the semi-finals by Japan, who then beat Malaysia to secure the country’s first Thomas Cup victory.
However, the odds are not in the Japanese’s favour in Kunshan this week after the star of the 2014 Thomas Cup, Kento Momota, was axed by authorities in April over a gambling scandal.
China’s men won the Thomas Cup five times in a row until their defeat to Japan.