Top seed Lee Chong Wei takes on fourth seed Lin Dan in the Men's singles semi-final of 2017 Badminton Asia Championships in Wuhan on Saturday.
The two legends are meeting for the 37th time in their careers and four-time champion Lin holds a mammoth 25-11 head-to-head advantage over the defending champion. While the draw pitted them against each other as early as in the semi-final, both shuttlers eased into the last-four round to make sure fans in Wuhan were treated to another chapter in their widely-followed rivalry.
Chong Wei made light work of Chinese Taipei's Hsu Jen Hao 21-18, 21-13 in his quarter-final match in just 43 minutes. On the other hand, Lin decimated in-form seventh-seeded shuttler Chou Tien Chen 21-14, 21-12 in his last-eight outing yesterday.
In their last meeting, it was the two-time Olympic champion who thumped Chong Wei in straight games in the final of Malaysian Open to take the Superseries Premier title that was eluding him ever since he made the final in 2005. While they were supposed to meet at the All England Championships final last month, Lin bowed out in the semi-final after losing to compatriot Shi Yuqi.
Saturday's match will also be their first semi-final meeting after the two legends met at the last-four stages of last year's Rio Olympic Men's singles badminton event. With both shuttlers being in the twilight of their career, they will be motivated to add another Asian crown to their impressive profiles.
Having won a Superseries title each in the new season, both shuttlers have hit peak form and there is very little to separate them on paper. While the crowd in Wuhan will be rooting for Lin, Chong Wei needs to be at his best to stop his arch-rival this time.
TV Schedule
India: Star Sports
Malaysia: Astro Supersport 4
Singapore: Hub Sports
China: CCTV 5+
