China land three titles but sting in the tail may follow

The half-hearted displays that led to match-rigging claims may have been a protest against controversial rules

China left the World Badminton Championships with three of the five titles in the bag, including both of the blue riband singles crowns. But the mainland's head coach couldn't resist a parting shot at the root cause behind the most controversial issue of the tournament.

Women's doubles pair Yang Wei and Zhang Jiewen could still face disciplinary action after the tournament referee submits his report on their half-hearted capitulation in the second set of their quarter-final against Gao Ling and Huang Sui, who went on to win the final 15-8, 15-11 against the top Chinese pair Wei Yili and Zhao Tingting.

A badminton insider suggested that their spiritless display was actually intended as a veiled protest at the change in the sport's 'national separation' laws, introduced last year, that led to players from the same country facing each other far earlier than usual.

The change in the way championship draws were made, from separating as many as 16 players as much as possible to only separating the top two players from each country, was agreed by the International Badminton Federation (IBF) council in Guangzhou in 2002, partly to increase television revenue and exposure by increasing the likelihood of mixed nationality finals in its tournaments.

After announcing that he was 'satisfied' with three gold medals, Chinese head coach Li Yongbo pointed to the quality of Zhang Ning's triumph over Gong Ruina to back his argument that all-Chinese finals are entertaining. 'On the one hand it's right, but on the other hand if the players in the final do not represent the finest in the world then the final means nothing,' Li said. 'The women's singles final proves the opinion is wrong because the match was splendid. The most important thing is not whether one nation or another nation meets in the final, it is how excellent the play is.'