ROSLIN: Needs to make the semi-finals of the Japan Open to make sure of his place in the Athens Olympics. PETALING JAYA: Olympic qualification will be foremost on the minds of the Malaysian shuttlers in the five-star Japan Open starting in Tokyo today. National singles head coach Misbun Sidek, however, is more concerned about early round jitters. All the world’s top players, including current number one and All-England champion Lin Dan, have gathered in Tokyo for the last Open tournament to offer ranking points before the Olympic qualification period ends on April 30. A country is allowed a maximum of three players if all of them are ranked inside the top 16. National No 1 Wong Choong Hann, who is ranked fourth in the world, is the only singles player assured of his place in the Olympics. Roslin Hashim and Lee Chong Wei, currently ranked 14th and 16th respectively, are also in the running but they need to make it to the semi-finals to assure themselves of places. Although a place in the semi-finals is what they need, Misbun is thinking of them surviving the early rounds. “The first and second rounds will be held tomorrow (today) and I am usually worried over how quickly our players can recover if they have a punishing first round match. “If their fitness can stand up to the test, they should have no problems. The Japan Open always attracts a tough field but this is the Olympic year, therefore everyone will be battling hard to survive. Our players have to be at their best,” said Misbun. The Malaysians have stiff opening round hurdles. Roslin, who lifted the title in 2001, has a tricky opening round match against Hong Kong’s Yohan Hadikusumo. If he wins, he will play either Chien Yu-hisu of Taiwan or Saeki Koichi of Japan. Younger brother Mohd Hafiz Hashim, who is ranked 28th, may find it hard to survive the first day, given his current form. Hafiz faces fast rising Indonesian youngster Simon Santoso in the opening match with the winner going on to play either China’s Chen Yu or Thailand’s Boonsak Ponsana later in the evening. Hafiz suffered a blow to his already flagging hopes of making the cut for the Olympic when he lost in the first round to South Korean Shon Seung-mo in the Korean Open last week. Hafiz will have to reach the semi-finals here to keep his Olympic hopes alive but he could find it tough, with world number three Lee Hyun-Il of South Korea and world number five Bao Chunlai of China drawn in the same half. National champion Chong Wei, who reached the quarter-finals of the Korean Open last week, also has a stiff hurdle to overcome. He is up against rising South Korean youngster Park Sung-hwan in the first round. If Chong Wei wins, he is expected to meet Dutch player Dicky Palyama, who pulled off a stunning upset over Chunlai in the Korean Open last week. “This tournament is crucial for me. I cannot afford to do badly here,” said Chong Wei. “A good performance will surely improve my position in the world rankings and reduce the pressure on me during the Asian Championships later this month.” Even Choong Hann will not have it easy. The Korean Open semi-finalist has a bye in the first round but will have to play teammate Yeoh Kay Bin in the second round. Doubles pair Chan Chong Ming-Chew Chong Eng, who emerged champions two years ago, may also be hard-pressed to repeat their feat this time. They open their campaign against Jose Antonio Crespo-Sergio Llopis in the first round today. But unless teammates Gan Teik Chai-Koo Kien Keat do them a huge favour, Chong Ming-Choon Eng will have to face China’s third seeded pair of Cai Yun-Fu Haifeng next. Teik Chai-Kien Keat qualified from the main draw to earn a first round match against the Chinese pair. Top doubles pair Choong Tan Fook-Lee Wan Wah should have no trouble clearing the first round, as they face Japan’s Matsumoto Toru-Keishi Kawaguchi.
