CHINA won the Thomas Cup qualifying round in Macau by beating Japan 3-0 yesterday.

   Chen Long gave China the first point when he beat Sho Sasaki 21-19, 21-16 in 52 minutes.

   Chai Biao-Guo Zhendong then overcame Naoki Kawamae-Shoji Sato 21-17, 22-20 in the first doubles while Du Pengyu secured the winning point, beating Kazushi Yamada 21-12, 21-11 in the second singles.

   South Korea also qualified for the final rounds in Wuhan, China when they won the playoff beating India 3-2 in their last match.

   Taiwan are also in contention for a place in the Thomas Cup after beating Thailand 5-0 to finish second in the playoff.

   Overall world ranking between Thailand and the fourth-placed team in the European qualifiers will determine the last spot of the team event which will be decided later.