Coach Misbun blows his top over Kwong Beng’s lack of commitment
Posted by valsus on September 5, 2009
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s singles coach Misbun Sidek was in a foul mood at Stadium Juara in Bukit Kiara yesterday.
And he had two good reasons for it.
Firstly, he was annoyed that Lee Chong Wei’s status as the world No. 1 had been belittled by many – especially after the shuttler’s failure to live up to his top billing at the World Championships in Hyderabad last month.
Secondly, he was furious with the lack of commitment shown by Chong Wei’s sparring partner, Chan Kwong Beng yesterday. Misbun even chased Kwong Beng out of the training centre – for two hours.
Misbun said he was sympathetic with Chong Wei for having to take the brickbats thrown at him since his infamous defeat to Sony Dwi Kuncoro of Indonesia in the quarter-finals of the world meet.
“No other Malaysian shuttler has maintained his world No. 1 status as long as Chong Wei has. That itself is an achievement,” said Misbun.
”He may not have won the world title but can anyone take his place now?
“In fact, he has narrowed the gap on three-time world champion Lin Dan of China since becoming the world No. 1.
“In the past, Chong Wei used to lose three to four matches before stealing one from the Chinese. But in the last one year, they have taken turns beating each other.
“Chong Wei works hard in training and takes everything that I throw at him. I will not be surprised if he is still the world No. 1 in the next two years or even until the next Olympic Games (2012) but with a better mentality of handling pressure and distraction from within.”
Misbun said that Chong Wei had handled himself well despite so many distractions since attaining superstar status.
“He is a popular figure now, there is money, big cars and other distractions, including attention from girls. But what does Chong Wei do? He trains. He talks only about badminton,” said Misbun.
“Chong Wei was crushed after the world meet debacle but he hauled himself up and went on to win the Macau Open title without dropping a single game.”
As for Kwong Beng, Misbun said: “I have high hopes of him becoming a top player one day. But I do not know when is he going to become like Chong Wei if he cannot focus on training.
“I blew my top because he has disappointed me again today and, hopefully, all the scolding will help him to change for the better.
“He stands to benefit the most by sparring with Chong Wei but he does not seem to understand that. I hope he will not make me give up on him completely.”
