Wei to go in Seoul
World No. 1 downs Lin Dan to reaffirm his Olympic intentions
PETALING JAYA: World No. 1 Lee Chong Wei stamped his credentials as a potential candidate to win malaysia’s first Olympic gold medal with a scintillating victory over nemesis Lin Dan in the Korea Open yesterday.
The 29-year-old Chong Wei overcame a listless start to carve out a 12-21, 21-18, 21-14 win over fourtime world champion Lin Dan of China in a physically taxing one-hour and 15-minute men’s singles final at the Us$1mil tournament in Seoul.
The brilliant start to the year earned him a cool US$75,000 (RM235,875) ang pow for the upcoming Chinese New Year.
And there could be more when he goes after his eighth home title at the US$400,000 Maybank Malaysia Open, which begins on Wednesday at the Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil.
It was his second Korean Open title after having won it in 2010 and his ninth career win over Lin Dan in 27 clashes.
Yesterday’s win erased fears that Chong Wei will always be in the shadow of the Chinese star – especially after losing in the World Championships, China and hongkong Opens last year.
The most painful defeat came at the world meet when Chong Wei lost despite leading 20-18 in the decider in the final.
Yesterday, Chong Wei’s display showed that he has got over the disappointments.
“It is a new year and I wanted a fresh start. It is great to start the Olympic year with a title by beating myclose rival Lin Dan. This is a positive sign for me ahead of the Olympic Games,” saidchongweiin a telephone interview.
“The win is a confidence booster for me. It was a physically draining match but it was really worth it.”
It was not all that smooth sailing for Chong Wei when the opening game saw the best and also worst of him. He wasdoing fine – playing well at the net and taking time to open up the game – until 6-6 and then he lost the plot to allow Lin Dan to pull away for an easy 21-12 win. Not many would have put their money on Chong Wei to recover from the lopsided opening game setback but he did. He took all that was thrown at him and then executed some exquisite moves at 18-18 to romp home for victory in the second game.
Chong Wei continued to show more urgency and aggression in the decider to outfox Lin Dan and at one point, the latter was left shaking his head in disbelief over the Malaysian’s deception.
And to top his misery, Lin Dan’s game was littered with uncharacteristic mistakes and it saw the Chinese finally giving up the fight and the Korean Open crown to Chong Wei.
“The first game against Lin Dan did not go as I planned but I kept chanting in my heart that I could pull through if I stayed focused. The win in the second game gave me all the confidence that I needed to go all the way.”
“This is a great start formeand from now it is important that I keep the momentum going and stay injuryfree.
“I will return home tomorrow (today) and focus on the Malaysia Open. I do not want to disappoint my fans and I will go all out to keep my unbeaten run intact on home soil.”
Both his coaches – Tey Seu Bock and Rashid Sidek – who were with him in Seoul, were delighted.
Said Rashid: “It is rare to see Lin Dan losing his focus but today he did. And this is all due to Chong Wei’s superb comeback. He did well to change and vary his game to make Lin Dan very uncomfortable today.”
Said Seu Bock: “Credit should be given to Chong Wei for the hard work he put in today. This win will be a big boost to his morale. Of course, Lin Dan and his other team-mates will come back stronger at the Malaysia Open but if there is one place where it is difficult to beat Chong Wei, it is on his home ground.
“Physically, both players have been pushed to the limit but I amconfident that Chong Wei will recover in time.”