LEE Chong Wei's late decision to compete in the Macau Open was not just to win his fourth title of the year but also to cement his grip on the World No 1 spot and he is just one step away from achieving both objectives.

Julia Wong also brought cheer when she advanced to the women's singles final.

Chong Wei, the top seed, secured a convincing 21-13, 21-14 win over Indonesia's Alamsyah Yunus in a 37-minute semi-final yesterday.

Standing between Chong Wei and the title will be 2004 Athens Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia, who was also solid in his 21-11, 21-12 semi-final win over Malaysian Kuan Beng Hong.

The head-to-head record stands at 4-4 but Chong Wei will be going in with confidence as he has beaten Taufik in their last three meetings.
Chong Wei had contemplated withdrawing from the tournament as he struggled to maintain his performance in the Japan Open two weeks ago and lost to Sony Dwi Kuncoro of Indonesia in the final, which prompted him to withdraw from last week's China Masters.

National singles coach Misbun Sidek, in a telephone interview from Macau, said Chong Wei's desire to remain the World No 1 is his reason for competing in Macau.

"It is not easy to maintain his position as the World No 1 and he competed here to consolidate his ranking. Chong Wei has done well in maintaining his form so far," said Misbun.

"Other players are trying to become the number one and there is pressure on Chong Wei. He is gradually learning how to cope with the situation and is progressing well.

"It will be a tough battle against Taufik as he also looks very keen on winning the title. Chong Wei will have to battle hard.

"He will have a couple of weeks to train before competing in his next tournament and winning here will further boost his confidence and also his position at the top."

Chong Wei's next tournaments will be in Europe as he will be competing in the Denmark Open on Oct 20-26 and the French Open on Oct 28-Nov 2.

In the women's singles, Julia reached her second grand prix final when she edged Yip Pui Yin of Hong Kong 17-21, 23-21, 21-17 in 60 minutes.

Julia will meet China Masters champion Zhou Mi of Hong Kong, who beat China's Zhu Jingjing 20-22, 21-18, 21-16 in the final today.

Julia has a fighting chance against Zhou Mi as the former China player is playing in her third consecutive final, having lost to Wang Yihan in the Japan Open two weeks ago.