Chong Wei going for first back-to-back title outside Malaysia
Posted by valsus on March 20, 2009
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s top men and women singles badminton players – Lee Chong Wei and Wong Mew Choo – will be out to accomplish different missions at next week’s India Open in Hyderabad.
Chong Wei’s request to take part in the India Open has been granted in order to give the Malaysian a shot at winning his first back-to-back title.
Last week, the world number one Chong Wei showed that his duel with archrival Lin Dan of China was far from over when he beat the southpaw in the final to win the Swiss Open title last Sunday.
At the All-England final in Birmingham on March 8 Chong Wei was outplayed by Lin Dan in the final.
National singles coach Misbun Sidek said the Grand Prix in India would be the platform for Chong Wei to cement his status as the world number one player.
The India Open will be Chong Wei’s last tournament during the qualifying period for the World Championships which ends in May. He will head to the same place in a bid to become the first Malaysian world champion in August.
“Initially, the plan was for Chong Wei to skip the India Open and the ABC (Asian Badminton Championships) next month. But he had requested to make the trip to India,” said Misbun.
“It will give him an opportunity to win a back-to-back title for the first time outside the country. It is something that he has set his mind to accomplish,” said Misbun.
Chong Wei has been drawn to meet world junior champion Chen Long of China in the opening round. The Chinese youngster will spearhead an army of young players from the Chinese camp for the tournament.
In Chong Wei’s half are Indonesian Andre Kurniawan Tedjono and a host of Malaysians – Liew Daren, Chong Wei Feng, Lok Chong Chieh, Chan Kwong Beng, Lee Tsuen Seng and the Hashim brothers – Hafiz and Roslin.
In the lower half of the draw are second seed Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia and his younger compatriot Tommy Sugiarto. together with four Malaysia’s Mohd Arif Abdul Latif, Tan Chun Seang, Kuan Beng Hong, Sairul Amar Ayob and Pei Wei Chung.
Misbun is more excited over the return of Mew Choo, who is making her comeback after skipping all the tournaments this year to recover from her injuries.
Yesterday, Mew Choo was involved in a round-robin match-play and won all her eight matches during a training session at Stadium Juara in Bukit Kiara.
“The India Open is her first tournament this year. She played confidently in all her matches. I could sense the hunger of getting back into the competitive mode,” said Misbun.
“If she can keep her spirit up, I expect her to reach at least the quarter-finals. Anything else will be a bonus. But all I can say is that Mew Choo is certainly back on track for her challenge in the World Championships,” he added.
Mew Choo is seeded third and has been drawn in the same half with top seed Pi Hongyan of France, Singapore’s Xing Aiying and Japanese Yu Hirayama.
In the lower half Malaysia’s Julia Wong and Lydia Cheah are bunched together with second seed Saina Nehwal of India and Indonesian Maria Kristin Yulianti. China’s top players are skipping the Grand Prix tournament.
