Playing Danish Emil Holst, the Chinese legend was 7-12 down in the opener (losing 21-19), and couldn’t catch up to set tongues wagging about no yin without yang, and no Lee, so no Dan. (Source: Reuters)
“The fears weren’t on the tip of the tongue — at the Emirates Arena, they were boomed aloud till everyone exhaled as the score finished 19-21, 21-8, 21-16. A day after Lee Chong Wei exited in the opening round from his 10th World Championships, the stadium had begun to murmur if Lin Dan would follow him out.
Playing Danish Emil Holst, the Chinese legend was 7-12 down in the opener (losing 21-19), and couldn’t catch up to set tongues wagging about no yin without yang, and no Lee, so no Dan.
These are nervy times for badminton, which is reeling from the shock exit — and even more rattling tatters of errors — of the Malaysian superstar on Tuesday, who looked as out of place as a jagged outcrop of a Scottish mountain. Unlike in tennis which has seen the resurrection of Federer and Nadal this year, shuttle stands edgily on the brink of losing two of its all-time greatest.
The Glasgow Worlds are starting to imagine a world where Lin Dan and Chong Wei would be gone, though the Chinese pulled the possibility back from the brink despite going a game down. Playing a 81-minute second round match — like walking a tightrope along the cliff — Super Dan eventually refused to be buzzed off by a European who was hard to put down.
“Of course, my motivation in tournaments will always be the gold medal and here that is no different. Along the way you will always have to play very hard matches so I am very pleased to come through this one,” said Dan of the tough-looking hobble into the pre-quarters.
Rarely in control
Though not a pool of errors, Lin Dan’s struggle on the day was stark in just how rarely he looked in control of the match against the Dane ranked 39. While his slowness is not too apparent in shot selection or defence, Dan is looking vulnerable on sheer strength as his opponents can bully him in rallies and pile the pressure on him.
Both in Games 1 and 3, Holst threatened to take it away from the Chinese 5-time World champion, by staying bull-headed in every single rally. While Lin Dan bossed the mid-game, it was Holst’s audacious slashing in the decider to level at 16-all that raised doubts. That the Chinese was kept on court for close to an hour and a half meant England’s Rajeev Ouseph can fancy his chances – so can everyone who lines up next. And that in short, is the shattering of the aura.
“It doesn’t get much bigger than playing the greatest player that’s ever played, and in the World Championships, so it’s very exciting and the pressure’s off me a bit, so I’ll just try and enjoy myself and see what I can do.I have to go into the match believing I can win this game, there are a few chinks in his armour, so I’ll believe I can win tomorrow,” Ouseph said.
The BWF is contemplating the 11-point format, that will considerably reduce the length of matches, and the plan will be put up for vote in November.
It’s likely to prolong careers – and Chong Wei and Dan can both start dreaming of Tokyo if that comes about, but these are two severely weakened legends. It’s not so much their games – which carry hangovers of the sublime – but the sheer audacity of younger, fitter challengers that is making this dethroning an interesting prospect.
Chen Long’s long taken over from Dan as the top Chinese hope, but it’s opening up the draws for those like young Indian K Srikanth and Danish Viktor Axelsen to take a shot at medals. On Wednesday, even Emil Holst fancied his chances against none other than Lin Dan.
