Lin Dan
Lin Dan is a win away from his seventh All England title.PAUL ELLIS/AFP/Getty Images
  • The men's singles final will not start before 2 pm local time, 6:30 pm IST, 1 pm GMT.
  • Lin is favorite to win his seventh All England title Sunday.
  • Shi has reached the All England final for the second successive year.

Two-time Olympic champion Lin Dan takes on higher-ranked Shi Yuqi in an all-Chinese All England Open Badminton Championships men's singles final in Birmingham Sunday, March 18.

Lin, the world no. 8, reached a record 10th final when he defeated unseeded compatriot Huang Yuxiang in three games — 21-14, 13-21, 21-11 in the semi-final Saturday, March 17.

The six-time All England champion, who had defeated arch-rival Lee Chong Wei in straight games Friday, suffered a blip against Yuxiang in the second game only to get back to his best in the decider.

Lin eyes 7th All England title

Lin will inch closer to Indonesia great Rudy Hartono's record eight All England titles if he manages a win Sunday. Notably, the latter had achieved his feat before the Open era.

The sixth seed, who has outclassed opponents with a good mix of deception and aggression, starts as favorite, given his vast experience of playing high-pressure matches.

However, he will be wary of his 22-year-old opponent, to whom he lost last year's semi-final in Birmingham. Shi also has a 2-1 head-to-head record over his senior compatriot.

Also, the world no. 6 has not lost a single game in the ongoing tournament. Having crushed reigning Olympic champion Chen Long in straight games in the quarter-final and clinched a similar win over South Korea's Son Wan Ho in the last-four round Saturday, Shi will be high on confidence heading into the final.

Shi will be eager to make amends for his listless display in last year's final where he was beaten 21-12, 21-10 by Chong Wei when he graces the Birmingham Arena court Sunday with another shot at creating glory.

Live stream and TV listings of All England Open 2018 final

  • India: TV - Star Sports; Live stream - Hotstar
  • China: GDTV, LETV and China Table Tennis & Badminton Channel.
  • Malaysia: TV - Astro Supersport 4; Live stream - Astro Go
  • Indonesia: Fox Sports
  • Thailand: True Visions
  • Hong Kong: iCable, PCCW
  • Denmark: TV2
  • US: One World Sport
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