Lee Chong Wei found his groove again after a testing second round encounter on Wednesday as he cruised into the World Championships quarter-finals together with men's doubles Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong at Tianhe Indoor Gymnasium in Guangzhou on Thursday.
Chong Wei, who was stretched to three games by Indonesian Dioniysius Hayom Rumbaka on Wednesday, showed his true class as he annihilated young China pretender Wang Zhengming with a 21-12, 21-7 win in 37 minutes.
A confident Chong Wei will be taking his fiery form into the quarter-final stage where he will meet Tommy Sugiarto of Indonesia, who overcame Marc Zwiebler of Germany 21-19, 21-14, on Friday.
"I watched the video of Zhengming against Vladmir (Ivanov of Russia) and prepared early to meet him. I adapted myself well to the draught and I didn't expect it to be an easy victory," said Chong Wei.
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"Normally, young players will come hard at us and we need to break their rhythm to put them under pressure.
"When Chen Long played against me in the Olympics (semi-finals), the same thing happened where he cracked under pressure.
"I also have to thank the fans for making me feel I am playing at home although I was up against a local player.
"I have not played Tommy for a long time and his win over Zwiebler proves he is in good form. I need to study his game and will be prepared for the quarter-finals.
"I also take this opportunity to wish all Malaysians and my coach Rashid Sidek a Selamat Hari Raya. I would like to produce a very good result as a gift to Rashid who has skipped the celebrations to help me here."
Lin Dan of China was tested in the first game by Malaysia's Chong Wei Feng but still managed run away with a 22-20, 21-10 win in 45 minutes.
Lin Dan will meet compatriot and second seed Chen Long, who eliminated another Malaysian Liew Daren 21-18, 21-15, in the quarter-finals.
Kien Keat-Boon Heong, seeing action for the first time after getting a bye in the first round and a walkover in the second round, started cautiously against Lee Chun Hei-Ng Ka Long but played with confident to win 21-17, 21-7.
They will meet bogeymen Kim Ki Jung-Kim Sa Rang, who have beaten the Malaysians in two previous meetings, after the Koreans defeated compatriots Yoo Yeon Seong-Shin Baek Cheol 17-21 21-18 21-18.
Kien Keat said he was tensed after playing for the first time only on the fourth day of the tournament.
"I was tense in the beginning as we haven't got adjusted to the conditions but we got better in the second game," said Kien Keat.
"We have not beaten Ki Jung-Sa Rang and I will stay alert in the quarter-final against them."
Boon Heong also wants to give his best shot to end their losing streak against the Korean pair.
"We cannot be losing to the same pair again. One day, we have to beat them," said Boon Heong.
However, Kien Keat-Boon Heong will have to raise their performance to a different level rather than depending on the law of averages to stand any hope on Friday.
Tan Wee Kiong-Hoon Thien How were threatening to steal a game off Cai Yun-Fu Haifeng of China but the four-time world champions, despite being past their prime, were still able to secure a 21-19, 21-13 win in 36 minutes.
Cai Yun-Haifeng will meet Japan's fourth seeds Hiroyuki Endo-Kenichi Hayakawa of Japan, who beat another Malaysian pair Zakry Latif-Fairuzizuan Tazari 23-21, 21-7, in the last eight on Friday.
The men's doubles also witnessed a major upset when Taiwan's Lee Sheng Mu-Tsai Chia Hsin ousted top seeds Ko Sung Hyun-Lee Yong Dae of South Korea 14-21, 21-14, 21-19 in the third round.
Meanwhile, women's doubles Vivian Hoo-Woon Khe Wei missed out on a golden opportunity to reach the last eight after performing poorly to allow South Koreans Eom Hye Won-Jang Ye Na to snatch a 21-16, 21-18 win in the third round.
In the women;s singles, unseeded Carolina Marin became the first Spanish player to reach the quarter-finals of a major event when she defeated fifth seed Sung Ji Hyun of South Korea 13-21, 21-13, 22-20.
Selected Third Round Results (Malaysia unless stated) -
Men's Singles: Lee Chong Wei v Wang Zhengming (Chn); Tommy Sugiarto (Ina) bt Marc Zwiebler (Ger) 21-19, 21-14; Du Pengyu (Chn) bt Takuma Ueda (Jpn) 21-19, 13-21, 21-7; Lin Dan (Chn) bt Chong Wei Feng 22-20, 21-10; Chen Long (Chn) bt Liew Daren 21-18, 21-15.
Men's Doubles: Lee Sheng Mu-Tsai Chia Hsin (Tai) bt Ko Sung Hyun-Lee Yong Dae (Kor) 14-21, 21-14, 21-19; Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong bt Lee Chun Hei-Ng Ka Long (HK) 21-17, 21-7; Cai Yun-Fu Haifeng (Chn) bt Tan Wee Kiong-Hoon Thien How 21-19, 21-13; Hiroyuki Endo-Kenichi Hayakawa (Jpn) bt Zakry Latif-Fairuzizuan Tazari 23-21, 21-7; Kim Ki Jung-Kim Sa Rang (Kor) bt Yo Yeon Seong-Shin Baek Cheol (Kor) 17-21, 21-18, 21-18;
Women's Doubles: Eom Hye Won-Jang Ye Na (Kor) bt Vivian Hoo-Woon Khe Wei 21-16, 21-18.
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