CHONG WEI SHOWS HIS CLASS
World No 1 reaches seventh All England final
IN a quick turn of events, Lee Chong Wei reached his seventh All England final yesterday. Just a month back, the World No 1 was on the brink of missing what could be his last All England after suffering a torn medial collateral ligament (MCL) during training at the Academy Badminton Malaysia (ABM).
In the semi-final stage against World No 9 Chou Tien Chen of Taiwan, Chong Wei clawed back from a game down to win the match in style 10-21, 21-14, 21-9 in just under an hour at the Barclaycard Arena.
National coach Tey Seu Bock, was over the moon, especially when Chong Wei had only a week of full training sessions before flying to Birmingham.
“I am extremely happy with how Chong Wei has turned things around for himself here,” said Seu Bock.
“Everyone knows that he almost did not make it for the tournament following his injury but to come here, play so well and then reach the final is a remarkable feat.
“To be frank, I don’t think he is at his best yet, which means he can be better in upcoming competitions. After all he only had a week of full training sessions before coming here.
“I don’t want to predict the final result but what I can say is it’s going to be an epic showdown.”
Chong Wei, a three-time champion (2010, 2011 and 2014) will take on the winner of the late semi-final match between China’s Lin Dan and his compatriot Shi Yuqi.
Both Chong Wei and Lin Dan have played each other in three previous All England finals.
Five-time world champion Lin Dan had won on two occasions (2009, 2013) while Chong Wei won his second title against the China ace in 2011.
In the mixed doubles semi-finals late yesterday, Chan Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying beat Japan’s Yuta Watanabe-Arisa Higashino 2117, 21-15.