Kean Yew: It’s the team, not just me
WHILE admitting that his impending showdown with Lee Zii Jia will be the highlight of the competition, reigning world champion Loh Kean Yew is not making too much of a deal of it.
In fact, the 25-year-old who flew in from Dubai last week, is looking forward to reuniting with the rest of his teammates as Singapore open their Badminton Asia Team Championships (BATC) campaign against Malaysia tomorrow at the Setia City Convention Centre in Shah Alam.
Earlier, the world No 12 had to undergo the mandatory five-day quarantine here after flying in from Dubai, having trained alongside world No 1 and Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark.
Kean Yew’s teammates, however, are not required to quarantine here because of the Vaccinated
Travel Lane (VTL) agreement between Singapore and Malaysia.
Speaking to the press on Sunday after testing the courts with the Hong Kong team, Kean Yew, who was rather reserved with his comments, said: “I’m here with my team. it’s been a long time since I played in a team event, so I’m really looking forward to it.
“I know everybody is saying my match against Zii Jia is the most anticipated match, and I’m excited about it as well.
“However, I’m here with my team, and every point is important. It’s going to be a team effort.”
Kean Yew, who moved to Singapore from Penang at 13, also brushed off talks about him being a world champion and his special training regime with Axelsen.
“There is nothing special. I just train like I always do ahead of any competition.
“However, this is the first time I’m playing in a tournament, having come out of quarantine. It’s not a good thing definitely, but I will still try my best.
“I know everyone is expecting a lot of me because I’m the world champion but I can assure you that I am the same person.
“For me, it starts from zero... all this is just unnecessary pressure.
“This is a team event, and anything can happen. I will give my best and hope that we will make it through,” added Kean Yew.
For the BATC, both Malaysia and Singapore are in Group B alongside Japan and Kazakhstan, while Indonesia, India, South Korea and Hong Kong make up Group A.
Only the top two teams will advance to the semi-finals and book their place in the Thomas Cup in Bangkok on May 17-22.