It has been eight years since Lee Cheuk Yiu last beat Jonatan Christie.

Today, after achieving a rare win against a home favourite at the Istora, Lee revealed how proud he was of himself – he hadn’t let the noise, the difficult conditions and the vagaries of his own mind get to him.

And not long after, with the fall of another home contender, Alwi Farhan, Indonesia were left without a challenger in men’s singles.

“There was a lot of pressure on me,” said Lee. “When I hit the shuttle I couldn’t even hear the sound – the crowd was so loud. So I’m so happy to win this match.

“When I started, the side was difficult. I had to calm down, start from zero and forget what happened in the first game. I just tried to avoid mistakes and had to be patient. It was a great experience, almost like playing at home. This is the first time I’m beating a home player here.

“I’m proud of myself. I’m happy I could do it, because my mentality is my weak side.”

While Christie was uncharacteristically erratic, Farhan proved a tenacious competitor against Anders Antonsen. The Indonesian had upstaged the Dane the last time they met, at the Sudirman Cup in April, and yet again Farhan showed great skill and the ability to dig in when the tide turned against him.

Antonsen, however, stayed steady in the third and finished the match comfortably, 21-16 18-21 21-14, but he came away mighty impressed with his young opponent.

“He’s an attacking guy and he’s got many skills in his repertoire,” Antonsen said. “Typical young player who’s very creative, obviously very fast. Interesting guy, for sure.

“When he’s on a roll, he’s playing phenomenally. Luckily for me, a few mistakes crept in here and there. He’s one for the future.”

Yet, the Dane was miffed that he was unable to close it out in straight games.

“Honestly, very disappointed that it went to three games. I felt I had it under control, my own nerves let him in. He kept fighting and credit to him, he could easily have dropped it. It paid off and I got shaky and I let him.”

The two blows for Indonesia meant Antonsen will face Lee for a place in the semifinals, while in the top quarter, Shi Yu Qi takes on compatriot Wang Zheng Xing.

→ Results (Round of 16)

WHAT OTHERS SAID

“Today what helped was each other and the coaches kept motivating us. Even though we were getting far behind, we didn’t let our spirit get down. We were prepared that the whole of Istora was against us but I believe there are also fans out there supporting us.” – Thinaah Muralitharan

“We pretty much gave away easy points. It’s these days when you have to somehow scrape the wins. When you are not at your best and yet able to win that’s something we can take as a positive.” – Chirag Shetty

“It’s not easy when it’s windy. The shots are different. I had to be precise and the shots had to be secure and that’s what he tried also, he wasn’t taking any risks. I was trying too much in the first. It was extremely physical and that’s what I’m good at, and that’s also my game.” – Alex Lanier, after beating Loh Kean Yew