World champion Lin Dan, plus team mates Chen Hong and Zhu Weilun, sailed into the third round of the Japan Open on Wednesday, but world championship silver medallist Bao Chunlai dropped out of the contest after a fierce match against Olympic champion Hidayat Taufik of Indonesia.

The Bao-Taufik clash was the cliff-hanger of the day, after Bao recovered from a first-set loss to take the second set and set the match all square.

The tension only increased in the fierce third and final set, with the two players constantly trading the lead, bringing the game to a knife-edge at 18-18.

In the end, Taufik survived the contest to walk away a winner: 21-12, 12-21 and 21-19.

World champion and top seed Lin Dan eased aside Japan's Yusuke Arita 21-11, 21-17.

Asian champion Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia, the second seed, downed former Asian champion Soni Dwi Kuncoro of Indonesia 21-13, 21-18.

European champion Peter Gade of Denmark thrashed Takuma Ueda of Japan 21-13, 21-13, while fifth seed Boonsak Ponsana of Thailand beat Takashi Kawauchi 21-15, 21-5.

(CRI October 12, 2006)