Tanongsak and mixed doubles pair eliminated
BIRMINGHAM: Thailand’s Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthongkam were upset in the first round of the mixed doubles at the All-England Open yesterday.
The Thais were defeated by Hong Kong’s Lee Chun Hei Reginald and Chau Hoi Wah 13-21, 21-14, 23-21 in 57 minutes.
In the men’s singles first round, Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk also suffered an early exit after losing to Taiwan’s Hsu Jen Hao 21-18, 18-21, 21-9 in the opening round.
Meanwhile, Lin Dan, widely regarded as the greatest men’s player in badminton history, marked his return to the championship with an appeal for his fellow professionals to be given more freedom.
The Olympic champion from China said Tuesday he wanted professional players to be allowed more choice in where and when they play, something which might have been regarded as an anathema in his country only a short time ago.
“Athletes are a crucial part of the sport,” said Lin.
“We should lower the barriers to entry for professional players so they can sign up [for tournaments] themselves. That might help younger players come through as well as prolong older players’ careers.
The Chinese superstar believes the longevity of great players, such as Lee Chong Wei, the reigning All-England champion from Malaysia, and two other former world No.1s, Peter Gade of Denmark and Taufik Hidayat of Indonesia, may have delayed the onset of a new wave.
Lin’s opinions were supported by Gade, who believes most players will only be able to make their own decisions when supported by their own organisation.
“Badminton is different from tennis and golf in that it doesn’t have its own professional players’ organisation,” said Gade.
“We have a different system. It’s a kind of old fashioned system. I know that the BWF [Badminton World Federation] and all the associations around the world are doing the best they can. But we have to put the bar as high as we can and work together. If we do that the sport we love has huge potential.
“We have huge stars like Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei. Hopefully we will see new stars emerge and older ones who still want to contribute. I don’t see many sports where bigger stars are active in this way. I really hope badminton will take advantage of this.”
Indonesia’s Taufik, the 2004 Olympic champion, said the game was “only about Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan at the moment.”
That long-lasting rivalry, however, will not continue in Birmingham, as Malaysia’s Lee is still suspended indefinitely for failing a doping test at last August’s world championships.
With Lee missing, Taufik said he could not predict the next big rivalry to excite the sport, largely due to inconsistency among the players at the top of the men’s game.
“For a great player, we will have to wait five more years as the standard is going up and down,” said twice All-England runnerup Taufik, who retired in 2013.
“Everyone has a different style. After Chong Wei and Lin leave, who else is there? [Current No.1] Chen Long perhaps, but he is not like these two. He has a different style and a different character. Badminton needs an icon like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in tennis. It is a question of how you become a champion and stay at the top.”