Lee Chong Wei is favoured to avenge his loss to Chen Long in last year’s final. RIGHT: Fit-again Saina Nehwal hungry to make impact.

AFP/Birmingham

Lee Chong Wei’s millions of supporters will be hoping that his bid to regain the All-England Open title here this week is not his last attempt at the world’s oldest badminton tournament, which begins again at Britain’s National Indoor Arena here today.
The world number one from Malaysia is top-seeded, favoured to avenge his loss to Chen Long in last year’s final, and employing his light-footed game at the age of 31 almost as nimbly as ever.
However, Lee originally planned to retire after the 2012 Olympics and has recently been suggesting that he may do so soon, perhaps after the Asian Games at Incheon in September.
Even though he will be highly motivated to win the All-England for a third time - the prime minister of Malaysia congratulated  him by cell-phone within minutes his last two triumphs - his mindset has new concerns.
These include a need to be with his wife and baby, the constant pressure of being the main hope of an aspiring nation, and an occasional tendency to hyper-tension. Lee prolonged his career only because he came so agonisingly close - just a couple of points - to the Olympic gold medal which would have been the first for any Malaysian in any sport. He felt a responsibility to see if another attempt was possible, but now doubts that he can. “I don’t know whether I can last until 2016 for the Olympics in Rio,” he said after winning the Malaysian Open in January.
“I just cannot imagine how I would fare in three years’ time,” he added, exaggerating slightly the time until the next Games, when he will be 33.
He may well be mindful of his dramatic collapse at the world championships in Guangzhou in August, when he was struck down by cramp at match point in another thrillingly close encounter with China’s Lin Dan and stretchered off.
Lee also failed to finish the 2012 All-England final against Lin, needing medical help three times. However he has been altering his tactical emphases so that there are fewer exhausting rallies.
His chances will be enhanced by Lin’s absence in Birmingham, but Lee’s coach Rashid Sidek makes it clear there is no complacency in approaching the All-England, which is still one of the top five tournaments. “We will put in an extra effort to prepare for this as it is a very prestigious tournament,” said Rashid, who was an All-England finalist in 1996.
“The absence of Lin Dan does not mean Chong Wei can win the title hands down,” he added. “Other players, especially younger ones from China, are equally capable,” he added.
Rashid may be referring to Wang Zhengming, a 24-year-old from Guangzhou, and Tian Houwei, a 22-year-old from Fuzhou, or perhaps even Du Pengyu, the seventh seed. The biggest danger however is again likely to be Chen Long, who also beat Lee in the finals of the Denmark Open in October and the Korean Open in January, and is seeded for a re-match in Sunday’s final.
Lee is possibly fitter now than he was a year ago, but may have to beware of a quarter-final with Du. His semi-final should be against Jan Jorgensen, the fourth-seeded Dane, or Kenichi Tago, the fifth-seeded Japanese who beat Chen Long in Malaysia. The women’s singles could produce a great semi-final showdown between Li Xuerui, the Olympic champion from China, and Ratchanok Intanon, the 19-year-old World champion from Thailand. Intanon upset Li in the world final seven months ago and was runner-up at last year’s All-England.
The other semi-final should see a tussle between two former All-England champions from China, Wang Shixian, the fourth seed, and Wang Yihan, the second. However Saina Nehwal, the Commonwealth champion from India, might upset such calculations, for after ending a 15-month title drought at the Indian Open in January she claimed she was back to her best. Seeded seveth, she should have a quarter-final with Shixian.
Moreover, she has trained very hard in the last few weeks and unlike last year she has no fitness concerns now. The Syed Modi GP Gold title in January may not be a great achievement but it helped Saina break the worrisome jinx of not winning a single title in 2013.
“Like everyone I too want to win this title. I came close last year but missed it. Things have changed this year as many players are playing quite well. The draw too is tough but we know it’s always difficult in such big tournaments,” Saina said, adding that she was quite satisfied with her preparations.
The titleholder, Tine Baun of Denmark, has retired and is expecting a baby; hence every leading women’s singles player is now Asian. Chinese players are top-seeded in the women’s and mixed doubles too which means their country should at least equal the three titles they achieved last year.
They also possess the fourth seeds in the men’s doubles, suggesting a repeat of the clean sweep of five titles they achieved five years ago is not impossible.

Legend Gade offers Lee a warning
Long-time badminton legend Peter Gade has offered a respectful warning to world number one Lee Chong Wei about what is needed to prolong his career. The 31-year-old Malaysian hopes to regain the All-England Open title this week, but has talked of relinquishing an attempt at another Olympic medal at Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and of retiring this year.
That would disappoint millions of Malaysians and countless others everywhere, who hope Lee might have another shot at winning his country’s first gold medal in any Olympic sport.
Gade has a view which might make this possible. Lee cannot compete as frequently as he has been and must either take a break or stop, says the former world number one from Denmark, who knows more about prolonging a singles career than any other player in the world.
Gade competed longer than anyone at the highest level, retiring soon after the London Olympics at the age of 36, many years beyond that of any other leading player. “Lee Chong Wei is giving it everything and he will feel ‘how far will I want to go’”, Gade said. “He will want to push whatever he’s got for his body and his mind.
“But to be on top form and produce good results week after week is extremely difficult, and you won’t see many athletes doing that. So I have a lot of respect that he is playing most of the tournaments. He is also playing his best when he plays.
“Lin Dan is in a different situation - where he can make choices,” Gade added, referring to the exceptional Chinese player who overcame Lee in the last two Olympic finals and who competes only occasionally these days.
“Lin Dan is acting differently. I am not saying one player is wise and one is not wise. It’s just that one is in a position where he can avoid the need to play tournaments.
“Lee Chong Wei may feel he has to play them. He will see if he can hold up for every event. That makes a difference in big matches: it affects your physical edge, motivation and energy.
“Lin Dan’s response is wise. I know many people say he should play more tournaments, but there is a reason why he doesn’t,” Gade said, meaning that aiming for semi-finals and finals in every tournament would be tough for Lin too. He too will turn 31 this year.
Gade speculates on the influences which cause Lee Chong Wei’s fuller schedule. “Maybe it’s sponsors, a lot of different elements, pressure from association, and other pressures - I can’t say for sure from the outside,” he said.
“I won’t say too much about that, but I do know what Chong Wei is doing is extremely tough, on the mind and the body. At some point he has to pull back and say ‘either I stop or take a break’.”