Olympic champion Chen wins opener at badminton's All England Open

LONDON, March 14 (Xinhua) -- Olympic champion Chen Yufei of China won her first-round match in the women's singles at the All England Badminton Open at Birmingham on Tuesday.

Chen, 25, fell behind Michelle Li of Canada after 2-2, but took five points in a row after 9-11 to take the lead. Tied at 20-20, 2019 winner Chen managed to win the first game by winning the next two points.

Chen, who reached the semifinals at last week's German Open, played more comfortably in the second game, leading all the way after 7-7 before sealing a 21-14 victory.

Chen's compatriots Wang Zhiyi and Han Yue also advanced into the second round in the women's singles. Sixth seed Wang and Han will fight for a quarterfinal berth next.

In the men's singles, world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen of Denmark came from behind to beat Lee Cheuk-yiu of Hong Kong, China, 19-21, 21-15 and 21-11.

The Olympic champion said that he was satisfied with his performance in the second and third game. Axelsen added that he had played too cautiously in the first game, but after he stepped up the pace and had better control of the rallies, he managed to turn the tables.

Meanwhile, Zhao Junpeng of China beat Singapore's eighth seed Loh Kean Yew 21-16, 16-21 and 21-7 to reach the men's singles second round.