National shuttler Lee Chong Wei cruised into the semi-finals of the men's singles badminton event after winning his quarter-final match at the Rio Olympics tonight.

The match saw the two-time Olympic silver medalist winning in straight sets 21-9, 21-15 in 45 minutes against Chinese Taipei’s Chou Tien-chen.

“I have to focus on my game here and there is pressure within me as this is my final call.

“I have to handle the pressure within me to emulate the men’s doubles and mixed doubles pairs who are in the final,” national news agency Bernama quoted him as saying.

In the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2012 London Olympics, Chong Wei lost to Lin Dan in the final and has yet to win the title in his fourth and final appearance here.

He will face China’s Lin Dan in the semi-finals on Friday. Lin Dan had defeated India’s Kidambi Srikanth in their quarter-final tie.

However unlike Lee, Lin Dan had to work hard to defeat his rival in three sets, struggling to win 21-18 in the rubber set after losing 11-21 to Kidambi’s onslaught despite powering through the first set with a 21-8 win.