Lin Dan of China returns a ball during the match?against P. Kashyap of India in the quarter-finals of the Sudirman Cup.[Source: Sina.com]

It wasn't the easy ride they expected, but China reached the semi-finals of the 2011 Double Star BWF Sudirman Cup World Mixed Team Championships on Thursday.

Expecting an easy passage against India, China were stunned with the underdogs put up a tremendous fight before going down 3-1 in front of a near capacity crowd at the at the Qingdao Sports Centre Conson Stadium.

World No. 3 Wang Xin was stunned by Saina Nehwal 21-15, 21-11 in a surprisingly one-sided match after Cai Yun/Fu Haifeng breezed past Sanave Thomas/Rupesh Kumar K. T. 21-15, 21-14.

"I made too many mistakes at the beginning and this affected my play," said Wang, who was chosen to play following the shock loss of world No. 1 Wang Shixian in China's first match against Germany.

However, Wang Xin's defeat could not prevent China from continuing their journey towards the semi-finals. Lin Dan claimed an easy victory over P. Kashyap in straight games 21-14, 21-14 before Yu Yang/Wang Xiaoli sealed the win by defeating Jwala Gutta/Ashwini Ponnappa 21-8, 21- 13.