Chong Wei gunned down by arch rival Chen Long

Malaysia's campaign in the Taiwan Open ended in the quarterfinals when former world number one Datuk Lee Chong Wei lost to current world number one Chen Long of China 21-17, 20-22, 13-21 at the Taiwan Arena, today.

Chong Wei, fresh from winning the Canadian Open and United States Grand Prix, found his arch rival a tough nut to crack in the match that lasted for one hour and 17 minutes, quite unusual for a badminton match to last that long.

However, Chong Wei who has yet to return to his old form after having served an eight-month suspension due to a doping offence, can take credit for dragging his in-form nemesis to a deciding set.

Chong Wei who is on a mission to earn as many points as possible to improve on his current ranking of 65, to earn a slot in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in Brazil, could have picked up some valuable points by advancing further in the tournament. The former number one had failed a dope test during a random dope test during the World Championships in Copenhagen, Denmark last October.