Wang Lin hopes Yonex-Sunrise Hong Kong Open is sign she is on her way up

Former world number one Wang Lin hopes her performance at the Yonex-Sunrise Hong Kong Open can help her fight back to the world's elite ranks.

The injury-hit mainlander couldn't stop her compatriot Li Xuerui, the newly crowned Olympic champion in London, in the women's singles semi-finals at the Coliseum in Hung Hom yesterday, losing in straight games 21-12, 21-13.

But a semi-final berth in a Super Series after starting in the qualifiers is the 2010 world champion's best achievement after two severe injuries over the past 24 months dumped her to as low as 107 in the world rankings in June. Wang reached the world number one spot in October 2009.

"I am quite happy with my performance in Hong Kong, although it could not be compared with those days," said the 23-year-old. "But I won't think too much about the past as I have to start all over again in my career since there have been a lot of changes since I won the world championship."

Wang Lin paid tribute to Li, whose speed made her invulnerable throughout the 30-minute game. "She is the Olympic champion and of course she is a very good player. This is the first time I have met her in a competition and she impressed me a lot," she said.

Li's victory means there will be a repeat of the London Olympic Games women's singles final in Hong Kong when the 21-year-old from Chongqing takes on another Chinese player Wang Yihan today.

World number one Wang Yihan was made to sweat in overcoming Juliane Schenk of Germany after three tough games, winning 21-8, 19-21, 21-15 in her semi. She lost to the German in the quarter-finals of last week's China Open.