Susi's crunch match with Bang still in the cards

Susi's crunch match with Bang still in the cards

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AFP): Susi Susanti's eagerly-awaited rematch with Bang Soo Hyun became a step nearer to reality as both reached the quarter-finals at the world badminton championships here on Wednesday.

World and Olympic champion Susi of Indonesia pushed South Korean Bang into the runner-up spot in both of those events.

But when Bang won the Asian Games in Hiroshima in October last year, beating Susi's conqueror Hizako Mizui of Japan in the final, she vowed to get revenge at these world championships.

"I'm out to get here," Bang said of Susi at the time.

Top seed Susi beat China's Yao Yan with little difficulty. Susi trailed 7-4 in the second game, but then went into overdrive to win 11-7, 11-8.

Bang beat the last player from outside Europe or Asia in the fourth round. Bang ousted Denyse Julien of Canada 11-2, 11-7.

China's Zhang Ning is continuing to prove a dangerous floater as she beat her second seeded player in succession.

Zhang won the tightest match of the round against 5/8 seed Ra Kyung Min of South Korea 12-10, 12-11. On Tuesday, Zhang, world ranked 29th, beat Sweden's 9/16 seed Christine Magnusson.

All England runner-up and Europe's best hope for gold Camilla Martin of Denmark breezed through against Japan's Yasuko Mizui.

And China's sixth world ranked Ye Zhaoying, who beat Bang in last week's Sudirman Cup, now meets Martin having disposed of Yuni Kartika of Indonesia.

Han Jingna of China, seeded 5/8, marched past Yuliana Sentosa of Indonesia 11-6, 11-8.

China-born Lim Xiaoming of Sweden struggled slightly in her match. She beat China's world number 20 Hu Ning 11-7, 12-9, but Lim trailed 7-2 in the second set and needed four match points before winning with an accurate lob.

Men's singles

In the men's singles, top seed Hariyanto Arbi thrashed Russian Vladislav Tichimorov 15-8, 15-7 to set up a fifth round tie with South Korea's Lee Kwang Jin.

Left-hander Lee, seeded 9/16, was on court 42 minutes before beating Sweden's 6ft 6in Thomas Johansson 15-13, 18-17.

World champion Joko Suprianto, who beat Germany's Todor Velkov, now faces South Korea's Dong Jiong, conqueror of Denmark's Martin Lundgaaard Hansen.

China's 27th ranked Chen Gang caused a surprise to get the better of 9/16 seeded Indonesian Lioe Tiong Ping 15-9, 15-12.

Ping's netted backhand ended the match, but Indonesia still has five of the top eight seeds in the competition as a formidable consolation.

Chen will have a tougher test against All England champion Poul Erik Hoyer Larsen of Denmark, who knocked out Sweden's Henrik Bengtsson 15-7, 15-11.

Earlier, men's doubles top seeds Rexy Mainaky and Ricky Subagdja and women's favorites Ge Fei and Gu Jun cruised through two rounds.

China's Ge and Gu, the 1995 Asian champions, easily disposed of New Zealand's Rhona Robertson/Tammy Jenkins and England's Gillian Gowers/Joanne Muggeridge in the second and third rounds.

Rexy and Ricky had a bye in their second round match, before beating Australia's Paul Staight and Peter Blackburn 15-5, 15-11.

The Indonesian All-England champions have their first real test against 9/16 seeds Henrik Svarrer and Michael Sogaard of Denmark in the fourth round.