CHINA MASTERS 2011 – All set in Changzhou

The China Masters kicked off this Tuesday in Changzhou, with only one match in the qualifying round – Kuan Beng Hong was beaten by Lu Yi of China. But all seems to be in place for this first Chinese leg of the Super Series before the China Open Premier SS later this year in Shanghai. Players have arrived and seem satisfied with the facilities. Most of them have even found a way to access their social network accounts, usually forbidden by the Chinese authorities, and will be able to give live news to their fans.

If former editions of this event held in Changzhou had seen mostly Chinese fighting for the titles, this year is an Olympic year and most of the top shuttlers have made the trip to this city which lies 2h away from Shanghai by car. However, Lee Chong Wei is not in China this week, which leaves the road wide open to Lin Dan, top seed for this event, which he won last year. Peter Gade is seeded second, and apart from the second round, the Dane is most likely to face one Chinese after the other if he wants to meet the 4-time World Champion in the final.

Draws HERE