LEE Chong Wei's dream draw in the World Championships has presented him the chance to end his long wait for a major title in Guangzhou on Aug 5-11.
National singles chief coach Rashid Sidek said the draw, coupled with other factors, has made Chong Wei a good bet to land an overdue major title.
Rashid compared the difficulties the World No 1 had to go through in order to reach the final of the London Olympics last year as the Malaysian had not played in a single tournament due to an ankle injury he had sustained three months before the event. He also had to face the in-form Chen Long of China first before a meeting with nemesis Lin Dan in the final.
Lin Dan prevailed in a tense final but Rashid pointed out that things favour Chong Wei this time around as he continues his search for the world title. Rashid said Chong Wei is not only injury-free but has also been playing regularly and won his last event, the Indonesia Open. He has had a solid six weeks of preparation before the final 10-day stint in Hong Kong that starts today.
To make it even better, Chong Wei only needs to worry about meeting just one of the two heavyweights in the final as Chen Long and Lin Dan are expected to cross swords in the last four.
"This is a very good draw for Chong Wei and his preparation for the tournament has been ideal. The other advantage is that he will only play either Lin Dan or Chen Long for the title unlike the Olympics where he had to face both players," said Rashid.
"Everything is in place for Chong Wei this time and he has been injury-free. He has been training very hard and is really looking forward to doing well in the tournament.
"There are a couple of tough matches where he plays China's Wang Zhengming in the third round and third seed Du Pengyu in the last four but as long as he doesn't lose concentration, he should prevail.
"Lin Dan has only played one international tournament (Asian Championships) and gave a walkover halfway through, so it is hard to gauge his form at the moment.
"I foresee Lin Dan going through as he is still a force to be reckoned with and no other player can perform better against Chong Wei in a major final like he does.
"However, Chong Wei should back himself with his current form and an exciting final is on the cards. We are keeping our fingers crossed."
Read more: Now or never for Chong Wei - Badminton - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/sports/badminton/now-or-never-for-chong-wei-1.326828#ixzz2adoW6WMR
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