Lin Dan takes on fifth seed Son Wan Ho in the Men's singles semi-final of 2017 Malaysia Supersereis Premier at the Jalan Stadium in Kuching on Saturday.
The seventh seed edged past Indonesian teenager Jonathan Christie in a hard-fought quarter-final match, which went on for an hour and three minutes. Lin dropped the second game but made sure it was only a temporary blip and went on to decimate the 19-year-old in the third game to take the match 21-15, 14-21, 21-9.
On the other hand, Son looked in no trouble as he made his way past unseeded Indian shuttler Ajay Jayaram in straight games in his last-eight encounter yesterday.
Lin looks hungry to go the distance in the ongoing tournament as he has played with determination over the first three rounds. He was tested in the opening round by unseeded Indian shuttler Sai Praneeth, but the two-time Olympic gold medallist remained composed like he was in the third match against Christie yesterday.
The Chinese legend has not won a Superseries title since last year's All England Championships and Lin would want to end his title drought by winning the crown in Malaysia, that has been eluding him ever since he reached the title match in 2005.
Lin will fancy his chances as he has a solid head-to-head record (11-2) against his South Korean opponent. The Swiss Open title, which he won last month, has also come at the right time for the Chinese shuttler, who has struggled to make the most of his appearances in the final stages of big tournaments in the recent past.
On the other hand, Son needs to step up his game if he has to stand a chance against Lin. The 28-year-old has not had a positive start to the season, suffering first-round exits at All England and India Open but he should take confidence from the fact that he has beaten the Chinese star twice in their last three meetings.
TV Schedule
India: Star Sports 2
Malaysia: Astro Supersport
Singapore: StarHub Sports
