A quarter-final spot in the Malaysianhad given a hint to Gopichand that Lin Dan, a Chinese Junior, was to be taken seriously.

And the All England Champion had said previously that this boy was the one to be watched. He couldn''t have been more right: Lin Dan put on a real show to beat the Indian player in five tough games. In the best match of the day, before the eyes of quite a number of people on the first day of the Singapore Lin Dan showed some great fighting spirit and incredible talent to show the exit to one of the most consistent players of these past months.

It all started off well for the 18-year-old Chinese, originally from the Fujian province (see his profile: http://www.worldbadminton.net/getstory.asp?id=168) Lin won the first game 7/5. Gopichand then got back into his regular routine, using smart net play and good acceleration down the line. Down two games to one, the young Chinese wonder thought he couldn''t get back. "I tried to play one point at a time, and even though I didn''t think I could win this match, I started believing I could put him in danger," said a delighted Lin after being congratulated by all his team mates.

Lifted up by his young and fighting spirit, anticipating on Gopichand''s net play to place some impressive net rushes, Lin Dan soon started to believe he could finally win. Led 2/3 in the fifth game, he took all his chances and attacked the shuttle earlier, leaving no time for his opponent to rule the game. On a last attack, the young left-hander wrapped it up, 7/5 - 1/7 - 6/8 - 7/2 - 7/3.

Only a junior (he was the first seed and semi-finalist in the world junior Championships in Guangzhou), he entered the "big world" with a spot in the last eight in last month Malaysianafter going through the qualifying rounds. "There is a big difference between the juniors and the seniors, and we have to be much more focused and concentrated because one can''t make any mistakes facing such good players," added Lin Dan. Something he did perfectly today, as disappointed Gopichand (pictured) admitted: "I played well, but he just played better than me today."

Lin Dan''s young compatriot Bao Chunlai - the World Junior champion - also advanced to the next round after a victory over qualifier Ardiansiah. And oddly enough, Lin Dan and Bao Chunlai are to meet in the next round for a rematch of the World Junior Champs semi-final.

The other junior wonder, Indonesian''s Sony Dwi Kuncoro (pictured) put up a good fight against Ismail Saman from Malaysia, but made too many mistakes. He lost in three games but should be another one to watch over the next few months.

Marleve Mainaky and Ji Xinpeng also advanced to the second round. The Olympic champion saved some energy, as his opponent, Yong Hock Kin, retired after he pulled his left thigh muscle in the beginning of the second game. Ji is to meet compatriot Wu Yunyong, who unexpectedly beat Sweden''s giant Martin Hagberg.

In the top half of the draw, everything went rather smoothly for the seeded players. Boonsak Polsana and Richard Vaughan took one game to get going, while Taufik Hidayat had a good come back after his last match played in Seville.

"I felt no pressure and I just enjoyed myself on court today. It has been a long time since I have played in competition, so it was nice to get a good first round," said the 20-year-old Indonesian, who had a dramatic exit in the World Championships last June when he had to withdraw leading 7/1 in the third and last game against compatriot Hendrawan. Hidayat then had to skip the Malaysian and Indonesiandue to his injury, then got banned from playing the WGPF from PBSI. "It''s the second time I''ve played with the new scoring system, after the Swiss so I still have to get adjusted," said Hidayat.

First seed Chen Hong had no problem with Wouter Claes of Belgium. The world number one showed a wide variety of his talent - insisting on tricky shot and deceptive wrist play to finish up 7/0 - 7/1 - 7/2. But the palm of the easiest match would probably go to Sweden''s Rimarcdi, who left no points at all to his opponent from the Netherlands, Robert Knee - 5 x 7 makes it even quicker!

Report and pictures by Raphael Sachetat