After winning the mixed doubles and men’s singles, hosts China sealed the showdown in the women’s singles where He Bingjiao beat Yeo Jia Min 22-20, 21-15.

The biennial Sudirman Cup has an extra edge this year because performances count towards qualification for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The mixed-team competition in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou is the first international sporting event in China since the country ditched its tough zero-Covid policies late last year.

China are clear favourites this year to retain the trophy, which they have won a record 12 times.

The win over Singapore today followed a 5-0 thrashing of minnows Egypt in their opening game on Sunday.

Indonesia, winners and hosts of the inaugural Sudirman Cup in 1989, also bagged a second win today after taking down Germany 4-1.

Thailand, whose best Sudirman Cup performances include three third-place finishes in the past five editions, defeated Canada 4-1 Tuesday for their second group-stage victory.

Yesterday’s matchups saw four-time winners South Korea cruise to a 4-1 win over England, while Indonesia whitewashed Canada 5-0 and Thailand downed Germany 4-1.

Nearly all international sporting events hosted by China were called off when the pandemic began.

The most notable exception were the Beijing Winter Olympics last year, which were held in a virus-secure “bubble”.