Two-time champion Wang Yihan of China made a compelling statement on Wednesday by beating Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in just 33 minutes at the 2015 Badminton Asia Championships.
Wang, who has been below her best in recent months, was expected to be troubled in the women's singles second round by the fast-rising World Junior champion.
However, the No. 6 seed from China looked dominant throughout the match and beat her young challenger 21-13, 21-7 to enter the last-16 round.
"Actually, when I was at the Singapore tournament, I knew I will play against her in Wuhan," said Wang Yihan after the match.
"I'd like to meet her again. She beat me in last year's Super Series final. And this time I hope to play my best. She made some errors." added by Wang, who will meet Indonesia's Maria Febe Kusumastuti on Thursday.
Wang's compatriots Li Xuerui and Wang Shixian also made the third round. Li overcame a second game loss to Vu Thi Trang of Vietnam while Wang Shixian had little trouble against Kazakhstan's Ilyana Filipchuk.
Li Xuerui, the London Olympic gold medallist, admitted that with fast progress of foreign opponents like India's current world number one Saina Nehwal, Chinese players had less advantages than usual in the Women's Singles.
"First, we must admit that foreign players have made solid progress. They become more and more experienced," said Li. "But every team can have the ups and downs. We believe we can catch up with them. Please give us time. "
In the men's singles, China's Lin Dan, the defending champion, eased to the last-16 with a lop-sided 2-0 victory in just 20 minutes. His teammate Chen Long, the currently ranked world number one, and Wang Zhengming also advanced to the next round.
The match of the day could be awarded to the clash between Liu Xiaolong/Qiu Zihan and Hirokatsu Hashimoto/Noriyasu Hirata in the men's double event.
The host's pair Liu and Qiu, All England Open winner in 2013, fought off the tenacious Japanese combination in three close games, winning at 21-17 18-21 21-13.
The 2015 Badminton Asia Championships is held in Wuhan from April 21 to 26. About 200 players from around Asia battle for the 200,000 U.S. dollars prize and Super Series ranking points.
