Can the 30 year-old Taufik Hidayat end title drought in Macau ? Taufiks’ chance to grab another title in Macau Grand Prix Gold badminton tournament remains unclear despite the absence of the world’s tops. As the four world’s best Lee Chong Wei, Lin Dan , Chen Long and Peter Gade decided to skip this tournament , the door to achieve success in the US $200.000 tournament is slightly open for Taufik Hidayat. He opens his campaign to reaffirm his position in the world elite by winning the first and second round matches. However, major obstacle lies definitely not only on his opponents but also on himself. Taufik Hidayat, one of the greatest and most widely recognized active badminton player, has been experiencing a steady decline in his badminton career recently. The player, who is also known as the golden boy from Indonesia , seems to find himself in the brink of his future. His 18 consecutive failures in previous tournaments somehow affect considerably to his confidence. In several interviews, the former Olympic and world champion has repeatedly stated that he is somehow unsure of his presence in the upcoming London Olympic which commences in July next year. Instead, he hopes that his younger compatriots can perform better to boost Indonesian chance in that 4-year event. Moreover, many of his rivals have seen that Taufik is no longer physically fit. In such highly competitive today’s badminton, players are forced to their very best to perform stronger, and faster. The Indonesian player is noted for his advanced technique in the game but today’s players are also improving and mastering new techniques to excel in the game. Finally, Taufik does not have strong ambition anymore for further achievement in badminton. He seems to be already satisfied to what he has achieved. He often blames his age as the main factor of his frequent losses. Badminton fans who join discussions in bulutangkis.com often argue that Taufik is demotivated because it is now impossible for him to beat his arch rival Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei. Reaching the semi final in Macau, by all means, indicates a sign of progress for Taufik after such poor performances in Sea Games. Now , the player who is no longer representing the body of Indonesian badminton organization (PBSI) stands out among other younger players in this tournament. Let’s find out how well he plays and thus makes him the tournament champion.
