Injury prevented Lee Chong Wei to complete his hat-trick at All England Open Premier Super Series
Malaysia’s top player Lee Chong Wei was dejected on the final day when a shoulder injury prevented him to complete his title hat-trick as he conceded walkover to China’s Lin Dan in the title match at All England Open Premier Super Series at Birmingham, on
Sunday, March 11.
The top seed in the event Chong Wei, who is currently World Number One in Men’s Singles world rankings, felt pain in his right shoulder before the final contest of All England Open.
However, to make his fans happy, he took the risk to play the match with an injured shoulder against the in-form Lin, who was the second seed in the tournament.
After losing the match, Chong Wei told that he felt this injury after his quarter-final match on Friday. However, he managed to beat Korea’s Lee Hyun Il in the semi-final showdown but his injury became intense.
In the final contest, he tried his best in the opening set and lost it with a close score on the board as he failed to play his normal game.
In the second set, he could not continue playing as his injury became intense and he decided to leave the court.
As a result, Lin took the crown with a 21-9 and 6-2 margin as his opponent conceded a walkover.
Chong Wei said, “This is an injury I picked up on Friday. I managed to survive against Lee Hyun-il but could not do the same against Lin Dan today. I could not smash or make a full swing. I knew much earlier that it would be tough but I did not want to disappoint
the fans.”
He added, “It is unfortunate that the injury came at this time but it is better that I stop playing as it may aggravate the injury. I do not want to jeopardise my chances for the Olympic Games.”
The Malaysian fans were still happy for their hero as they knew that Chong Wei was completely unable to play because of his shoulder injury which prevented him to execute his powerful smashes for which he is famous to the world.
Because of his injury, the World Number One will also not appear in the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold, starting from Tuesday, on March 13, in Switzerland.
Tags: