Hafiz Wont be playing in the indonesian open this year. He has been withdrew by Misbun
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Fever forces Hafiz out of Indon Open
BY LIM TEIK HUAT
PETALING JAYA: A fever has dashed shuttler Mohd Hafiz Hashim's hopes of making a return to competition at the Indonesia Open, which will be played in Jakarta next week.
National singles coach Misbun Sidek has decided to withdraw Hafiz from the six-star tournament after Hafiz came down ill yesterday.
The national team leave for Jakarta this weekend and Misbun said there was not enough time for his charge to regain full fitness.
“He is taking medication for fever.
“Even if he recovers next week, he is still weak and won't be able to challenge strongly for the title. It is better for him to rest at home and regain his strength,” said Misbun yesterday.
He added that 22-year-old Hafiz would now concentrate on making a rebound in the European legs of the World Grand Prix circuit – the Dutch Open (Oct 11-16) and Danish Open (Oct 18-23).
Hafiz has been plagued by poor form since winning the Swiss and Thai Open titles early in the year.
He suffered a knee injury and was shown the exit in the third round of the Japan Open in April. Hafiz also gave a poor account of himself in the World Championships in Anaheim last month, losing to South Korean Lee Hyun-il in straight games in the third round.
He was among the national players rested for the recent China Masters and Asian Championships.
The withdrawal from the Indonesia Open would possibly see Hafiz dropping out of the top 10 in the world rankings.
Hafiz is currently ranked at number eight and he has been included in the squad for the SEA Games in the Philippines (Nov 27-Dec 5).
Misbun will be not in Jakarta next week but he is hoping that the other player under his charge, Kuan Beng Hong, will be able to put up a good showing.
Beng Hong gained from the absence of the top players in the Asian Championships in Hyderabad last week to finish as the runner-up to Indonesian Sony Dwi Kuncoro.
“I am happy that he lived up to his second seeding. He beat a top player in Hyun-il and I hope this has given him the confidence to aim for bigger things.
“It will be good if he can score a big upset win in Indonesia,” said Misbun.
Besides Beng Hong, the other Malaysian singles players for the Indonesian Open are world number four Lee Chong Wei, Wong Choong Hann, Roslin Hashim, James Chua, Yeoh Kay Bin, Lee Tsuen Seng, K. Yogendran and Pei Wei Chung.
The Star
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Hafiz's form/consistency/fitness im sure is worrying everyone...
hopefully he gets back in the SEA Games, or in one of the bigger tournaments later on in the year!!
Malaysia BOLEH...
btw, isnt Pei Wei Chung one of the upcoming malaysian youngsters? and so shouldnt Lim Kenn be there as well? or has he not proven himself...