• Badminton

Brits crash out of All England

ESPN staff
March 12, 2010
Anthony Clark and Heather Olver were beaten in straight sets © Getty Images
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British pairs Anthony Clark and Heather Olver and Nathan Robertson and Jenny Wallwork lost their respective mixed doubles quarter-finals to end all British challenge at the All England Badminton Championships in Birmingham.

After their stunning defeat of the reigning Olympic champions to reach the quarter-finals, Clark and Olver fell to third seeds Lee Yong Dae and Lee Hyo Jung 21-19 21-17 in just 37 minutes.

Robertson and Wallwork, meanwhile, hit twice as many smash winners as their Indonesian opponents Nova Widianto and Liliyana Natsir, but the second seeds moved through to the semi-finals after a 21-18 21-19 victory.

In the women's singles, former world No. 1 Tine Rasmussen saved three match points to beat sixth seed Lu Lan 16-21 23-21 21-11. In an epic match lasting nearly an hour, the Dane, a finalist in Birmingham last year, fought back from losing the first game to move into the semi-finals.

She will now play India's Saina Nehwal, who beat Germany's Juliane Schenk 21-14 21-16.

In the men's singles Olympic champion and Chinese No. 2 seed Lin Dan was the major casualty, falling 21-16 18-21 21-17 to compatriot Bao Chunlai.

Kenichi Tago came out on top, beating third seed Jin Chen 22-20 19-21 21-13, while Denmark's fifth seed Peter Hoeg Gade edged out No. 4 Taufik Hidayat 22-20 20-22 20-22.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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