Marin vows better show at All England

Rio Olympics gold medallist Carolina Marin on Friday vowed to come back stronger in the All England Championship next month, after her campaign in the India Open BWF World Tour 500 ended following a shocking defeat to lower-ranked Hong Kong’s sixth seed Cheung Ngan Yi in the quarters here on Friday.

Cheung Ngan Yi registered an upset 21-12, 21-19 victory to end Marin’s journey in the tournament. Thanking India for the love, Marin, who have been in the country for more than a month now, had earlier led the Hyderabad Hunters to clinch the third season of the Premier Badminton League (PBL).

“The Asian tour has finished... Thanks India for your support and love. See you soon!” Marin wrote on her Twitter handle.

But the 24-year-old had a word of caution for all her rivals ahead of the prestigious All England Open, to be played from March 14 to 18 at Birmingham.

Marin feels she still needs to sharpen her skills and vowed to be at her best in England.

“I feel my performance is not 100 percent but it would be there in the All England. I feel motivated because I want to keep improving my game. I will prepare very well for All England,” said the former world No.1.

The 24-year-old from Spain clinched two World Championship titles, an All England title beside the Olympic crown -– all within three years between 2014 to 2016.

But she lost motivation because of injuries post the Rio Games. Last year, she won the Japan Open and European Championship besides reaching the finals at India Open, Malaysia Open and Singapore Open.

However, she suffered a hip injury during the Hong Kong Superseries and missed the Dubai Superseries Finals in December.

“Last year it was hard because I had injuries after Olympics and my body needed a long break. It is always tough to keep going mentally after you have an injury but I have a good team,” she said.

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