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KUALA LUMPUR  - World badminton number one Lee Chong Wei stayed on course Friday to win his eighth Malaysia Open title when he defeated former world and Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat in straight games.

 

The Malaysian, who is hoping to equal compatriot Wong Peng Soon's record of eight men's titles, thrashed the Indonesian 21-9, 21-18 in their quarter final.

 

Lee was in total control of the match and even when he was trailing in the second game kept his cool and moved his opponent around the court.

 

In the semi-finals Saturday, he will face Chen Long, the player who ended his run as champion of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Superseries Finals in December.

 

Lee was confident about his match against the Chinese despite calling him "one of the strongest opponents" in the tournament.

 

"He is young and a very aggressive player," Lee said. "The pressure is on my side because I'm the defending champion, and playing on the home ground. I hope I can maintain my form from Korea where I won the title."

 

Lee beat arch-rival and world number two Lin Dan in the final at the Korea Open earlier this month.

 

World, Olympic and Asian Games champion Lin, who many regard as the greatest player in the history of the sport, suffered a stunning three-game reversal on Thursday when Denmark's Jan O Jorgensen won 14-21, 21-15, 21-15.

 

But the Dane, who was nearly forced to give up the game in October due to a heart ailment, could not continue his good form on Friday as he was knocked out by 2010 world champion Chen Jin, who won 21-16, 20-22, 21-6.

 

Jorgensen failed to defend his Denmark Open crown last October when he withdrew from the quarter-finals with inflammation of the heart valves.

 

He underwent several medical check-ups and while he still suffers from irregular heartbeats, he has been cleared to play. He said he is now concentrating on qualifying for the Olympics. — Agence France Presse