Lee Chong Wei defies all odds to storm into Men’s Singles final at 2012 London Olympics
Malaysia’s mega star Lee Chong Wei ended up a long and fastidious period of two months for good as he reached into Men’s Singles final after showing exit to China’s Chen Long in semi-final showdown at the 2012 London Olympics on Friday, August 3, at Wembley
Arena, in London.
The World Number Two Chong Wei, who is top seed in the championship, played superb badminton as he showed no sign of injury and easily thrashed Long without dropping any game to land a podium berth.
The higher ranked Chong Wei has been facing many controversial statements from different critics containing the matter that he will not be able to play at his best.
Nevertheless, the gritty Malaysian shuttler proved everyone wrong by showing a steely determination and crushed the Chinese in straight sets with a superb 21-13 and 21-14 score on the board.
On the other hand, the World Number Three Long failed to live up to the expectations as he could not cope up with the planned and positive game of Chong Wei and crashed out without event getting closer on board.
After winning the match Chong Wei said that it was a huge relief for him to clear the semi-final stage which means that he has secured one medal for sure.
He said, “I cannot explain just what this means to me. It is a load off my shoulders as the entire hopes of Malaysia were on me to deliver a medal. A silver is certain but that is not what I am looking at.”
Chong Wei will take on China’s best shuttler and current World Number One Lin Dan in the final battle of the tournament which will be a repeat match of 2008 Beijing Olympics in which the Chinese player appeared as the winner.
Chong Wei added, “Four years ago the situation was different as it was held in Lin Dan's backyard and now its at a neutral venue. Yes this place has bad memories for me since I was a step away from winning the world title last year.”
The Malaysian shuttler also lost to Lin in the final of World Championships 2011 at the same Wembley Arena.
However, this time Chong Wei has a different state of mind and a gradual improvement in his rhythm and tempo indicates that he will be a tough nut to crack for the Chinese in the title match of London Olympics.
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