Lin Dan has still got it. In the opening round of French Open he beat home crowd favourite Brice Leverdez.

What more can you as a badminton French player wish for? On Tuesday afternoon French Brice Leverdez walked on court in the capital of France facing the all-time greatest men’s singles, Chinese Lin Dan.

A lot of badminton fans are asking each other: “For how long will Lin Dan continue to play?” Nobody knows for sure, but one thing was clear this Tuesday: The spectators got top level entertainment from the former world number one.

Lin Dan on top
The Chinese legend was off to a good start leading 11-3 and Lin Dan won the first game 21-12.

- His shots are incredible so if you are not ready for everything it is difficult to play against him. It is always hard to catch up with his game. He is a top player. You cannot rally with him. His shots have high quality every time, Leverdez said.

- I do not like his way of playing, but I tried to do my best.

Long or Gemke
In the second game Lin Dan still was on top. The two-times Olympic five-times world champion won the second game 21-9.

- He played really really well. I did not play a bad game. I feel I tried my best, but he was just way better than me today, Leverdez stated.

In the second round Lin Dan will face either Chen Long (China) or Rasmus Gemke (Denmark).

See all the results from French Open here