ants
01-02-2006, 06:45 PM
3rd Jan TheStar
PETALING JAYA: After surviving an injury scare last week, Lee Chong Wei is looking ahead to making a good impression in the season-opening tournament of the World Grand Prix badminton circuit, which begins in Basel tomorrow.
Chong Wei complained of pain in his left heel caused by an ill-fitting shoe during training early last week. But the 23-year-old national number one recovered after two days of rehabilitation and he was given the nod by coach Li Mao to compete in the Swiss Open.
Chong Wei, who won the national title for the fourth consecutive time in Kota Kinabalu last month, will be out to chalk up good results in Basel ahead of the more prestigious All-England, which will be played in Birmingham from Jan 17-22.
The current world number three will be competing in the Swiss Open for the first time in three years and he is the top seed in the absence of China's Lin Dan and Bao Chunlai.
The path appeared to be clear for Chong Wei to win the first title of the year but he is not taking anything for granted.
“I will give it my best shot,” he said from Basel yesterday.
“But this being the first tournament of the year for me, I don't want to put too much pressure on myself. I will take one match at a time. My priority is to peak for the All-England.”
The German Open scheduled for Jan 11-15 will precede the All-England. Malaysia will be represented by their second second stringers in the German Open.
The top national shuttlers, including Chong Wei, will going to Milton Keynes, England, after the Swiss Open to get themselves better prepared for the All-England. The weather is cold in Switzerland and in England with temperatures between 0°C and 1°C.
“My heel is not bothering me anymore. But it is quite cold here (in Basel) and warming up properly before a match is very important,” said Chong Wei.
He has a first-round bye and is tipped to play against either teammate Wong Choong Hann or South Korean Lee Hyun-il in the semi-finals.
Chong Wei holds a 4-3 record against Hyun-il and he was the loser in the last meeting in the quarter-finals of the Indonesian Open last year.
The other half of the draw has second seed Peter-Gade Christensen of Denmark and Malaysian number two and defending champion Mohd Hafiz Hashim.
The other Malaysian singles players in the fray are Kuan Beng Hong, Lee Tsuen Seng, K. Yogendran, Yeoh Kay Bin, James Chua and Sairul Amar Ayob.
PETALING JAYA: After surviving an injury scare last week, Lee Chong Wei is looking ahead to making a good impression in the season-opening tournament of the World Grand Prix badminton circuit, which begins in Basel tomorrow.
Chong Wei complained of pain in his left heel caused by an ill-fitting shoe during training early last week. But the 23-year-old national number one recovered after two days of rehabilitation and he was given the nod by coach Li Mao to compete in the Swiss Open.
Chong Wei, who won the national title for the fourth consecutive time in Kota Kinabalu last month, will be out to chalk up good results in Basel ahead of the more prestigious All-England, which will be played in Birmingham from Jan 17-22.
The current world number three will be competing in the Swiss Open for the first time in three years and he is the top seed in the absence of China's Lin Dan and Bao Chunlai.
The path appeared to be clear for Chong Wei to win the first title of the year but he is not taking anything for granted.
“I will give it my best shot,” he said from Basel yesterday.
“But this being the first tournament of the year for me, I don't want to put too much pressure on myself. I will take one match at a time. My priority is to peak for the All-England.”
The German Open scheduled for Jan 11-15 will precede the All-England. Malaysia will be represented by their second second stringers in the German Open.
The top national shuttlers, including Chong Wei, will going to Milton Keynes, England, after the Swiss Open to get themselves better prepared for the All-England. The weather is cold in Switzerland and in England with temperatures between 0°C and 1°C.
“My heel is not bothering me anymore. But it is quite cold here (in Basel) and warming up properly before a match is very important,” said Chong Wei.
He has a first-round bye and is tipped to play against either teammate Wong Choong Hann or South Korean Lee Hyun-il in the semi-finals.
Chong Wei holds a 4-3 record against Hyun-il and he was the loser in the last meeting in the quarter-finals of the Indonesian Open last year.
The other half of the draw has second seed Peter-Gade Christensen of Denmark and Malaysian number two and defending champion Mohd Hafiz Hashim.
The other Malaysian singles players in the fray are Kuan Beng Hong, Lee Tsuen Seng, K. Yogendran, Yeoh Kay Bin, James Chua and Sairul Amar Ayob.