Chong Wei, you made all M'sians proud of you: Najib
Published on: Tuesday, March 14, 2017
Kuala Lumpur: World number one Datuk Lee Chong Wei's victory in the All England Open Badminton Championships 2017 certainly had Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak rejoicing."Datuk Lee Chong Wei you made all Malaysians proud of you! Superb display of skills and fighting spirit," the Prime Minister said in his Twitter account.Chong Wei added a fourth All England men's singles title to his impressive collection by beating Shi Yuqi from China at Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham, England, Sunday night.
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The Rio de Janeiro Olympics silver medallist swept home 21-12, 21-10 in just 45 minutes; his opponent suffered a leg injury towards the end of the second game.Chong Wei who won the title in 2011, 2012 and 2014 was expected to face his arch rival and defending champion Lin Dan from China in the final but all expectations fell flat when the former world number one unexpectedly lost to Shi Yuqi in the semifinal.Najib also said Malaysian mixed doubles pair Chan Peng Soon/Goh Liu Ying should not be dissapointed over their failure to cross the final hurdle, losing 21-18, 19-21, 16-21 to Lu Kai/Huang Yaqiong from China."Chan Peng Soon and Goh Liu Ying need not feel disappointed to get a silver; they played well.
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We will continue to support #AllEngland," he assured.Peng Soon/Liu Ying took the first game 21-18 and were leading the second game 17-16 when a disputed call from the umpire disrupted the Malaysian duo's rhythm, causing them to lose concentration.
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It was the first final for the duo who had never gone past the semifinal stage. Meanwhile, Chong Wei's fourth All-England title meant he has equalled the achievement of Morten Frost, the Dane who is his coaching director in Kuala Lumpur.His tally is more than any singles player of the Open era except Lin Dan, who is the only opponent consistently to get the better of him.At 34, Chong Wei is the oldest singles champion of the Open era.He disclosed afterwards that he almost didn't make it to Birmingham, unsure whether his damaged left knee heavily strapped would tolerate competitive stresses."When I decided to come—which was a very close decision—I never at all thought that I would win the title," said Chong Wei."Yes, I am very surprised. I came because it might be my last, and I just wanted to come and enjoy it."After two matches he was already feeling more confident about the injury, although he claims it was "never a hundred percent".Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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