Chen Long hoping to tower over Dubai rivals

Dubai: World No 1 Chen Long is arguably the tallest men’s badminton player in the world, a claim that’s not to difficult to believe, considering he’s 6-foot-two. Quite simply that puts him way above his seven rivals competing in the Dubai Superseries Finals starting on Wednesday at the Hamdan Sports Complex.

But Chen’s dominance is not just limited to his superior physicality — he is without doubt the most dominant player on the planet having won seven major titles this year, including five of the Superseries and the World and All-England Championships.

He begins his quest to crown a magical year by extending his red-hot form over the likes of Kento Momota from Japan, the second seed in Dubai, Danes Jan Jorgensen and Viktor Axelsen, and Tian Houwei, a talented 23-year-old from Fujian.

“I don’t just think about becoming champion, I’m in the sport because I love it,” said Chen who is the first player in the world to earn more than 100,000 world ranking points.

“With patience I have learned to relax more on court and to cope with the pressure of playing difficult matches.

“Obviously this week in Dubai is not going to be easy because all the players are well prepared and ready to give their best. It expect it to be competitive but I thrive in competition and am hopeful of a good result.”

The biggest threat to his Chen could come from Kento Momota, the former junior world champion who pioneered Japan’s historic Thomas Cup victory against China last season.

Momota has rapidly progressed up the rankings and is currently placed No 5 in the world. He has an impressive strike rate of 31 victories against 11 defeats from 42 matches this season and is looking for a third Superseries success after the Singapore and Indonesian Open.

India’s Kidambi Srikanth, who stole the eighth and final qualifying spot by just 200 points, will be hoping to grab the opportunity and make his mark, as will the qualifiers, Chou Tien Chen of Taiwan and Hu Yun of Hong Kong.

The women’s titleholder is Tai Tzu Ying, who is ranked sixth.

Spaniard Carolina Marin leads the rankings. The two-time world champion is making her Dubai debut after being denied an automatic entry 12 month ago due to being ranked outside the top ten.

“I think I have progressed as a player the last 12 months and I’m looking forward to playing here in Dubai this week,” she said.

“There are some tough early matches with Nozomi [Ukuhara], Saina [Nehwal] and Tai Tzu [Ying] in my group but I have prepared well and am ready to give my best.

“I don’t really worry about who I play, I just like to concentrate on my game and to minimise my mistakes. If I can control my mind, I think I can beat all my opponents. So you can say I’m confident about this tournament.”

Indian ace Nehwal is hoping that the fan support will help buoy her performance as she bids to shake off an ankle injury and end the year on a high.

“It’s been a good year, I became India’s first World No 1 in singles, won the India Open, and also reach the finals of the World Championships, All-England and China Open,” she said.

“If my leg does not trouble me, I think I should be competitive and hopefully do well this week. It’s a tough Group to qualify from, but if I play my game I hope to reach the semi-finals and after that we will see what happens, added the 25-year-old from Hyderabad who will also feature in the doubles.