Olympic champion Li Xuerui on path to All-England Open glory
Last Updated: 04/03/15 3:22pm
Olympic champion Li Xuerui made a happy and winning return to the tournament which set her on the path to glory, working her way past a dangerous opponent in the first round of the All-England Open on Wednesday.
It was here three years ago that the then little known Li forced her way into China's Olympic team by winning the All-England title.
Now as top seed she started a bid to regain it with a cleverly-crafted 21-13, 21-17 win over world No. 12 Zhang Beiwen, a former compatriot.
Zhang, who moved from Liaoning to Singapore and then to Las Vegas and now represents the United States, showed how resilient she can be in defence, and recovered tenaciously from 9-15 to 15-15 in the second game.
It was then that Li found her great range of attacking strokes as three points in a row, culminating in a winning mid-court jab which made her squawk with pleasure, turned the match back her way.
Li thought that the arena, which she remembers so well because it helped propel her to the 2012 Olympic gold medal, was even better than before.
"It was a fairly comfortable start," she said. "Especially as the whole arena is much better because has been refurbished. The athletes' rest area is much, much better.
"That is important to me," added Li, who may not have completely recovered from back problems. "It means I can have a better rest and prepare for my next match better."
Li is due to play a second round tie against the winner between her compatriot Sun Yu and Nichaon Jindapon of Thailand.
Watch the All-England Open semi-final live on Sky Sports 3 on Saturday March 7 from 12pm. Then watch the final from 12pm on Sunday March 8, live on Sky Sports 3.
