Badminton: Lee opens Finals with easy win over Ng

Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei hits a shot during the men's singles final at the Hong Kong Open badminton tournament in Hong Kong on Nov 26, 2017.
PHOTO: AFP

DUBAI • Malaysian shuttler Lee Chong Wei got off to a winning start at the BWF World Superseries Finals yesterday, boosting his hopes of a first victory in Dubai at the season-ending tournament.

The 35-year-old took revenge over Angus Ng Ka Long of Hong Kong by scoring a comfortable 21-14, 21-13 win in the opening Group A match at the Hamdan Sports Complex.

Lee lost to Ng, 23, at the China Open quarter-finals last month in a match in which he claimed that he was just "unlucky".

But the Malaysian had all the luck yesterday as he breezed through the opener in just 40 minutes.

He will be hoping that he can carry on the momentum when he takes on top seed Son Wan Ho of South Korea.

Lee has won the Finals four times - in 2008 (Kota Kinabalu), 2009 (Johor Baru), 2010 (Taipei) and 2013 (Kuala Lumpur) - but has yet to win in Dubai.

This is the fourth and final year the competition is taking place in the United Arab Emirates city.

China's Chen Long, meanwhile, withdrew from the tournament on Tuesday, reportedly due to a knee injury.

The decision leaves the Badminton World Federation (BWF) in a spot, as Chen's withdrawal means that his place in Group A will not be filled by another player since the tournament rules do not have the provision for standby players after the draw was made.

ASIA NEWS NETWORK/THE STAR


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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on December 14, 2017, with the headline Badminton: Lee opens Finals with easy win over Ng. Subscribe