Former world No. 1 and the last European to win the All-England Open men’s singles tournament, Peter Gade, said the return of China’s Lin Dan to the event for the first time in three years today should show, despite his spasmodic appearances these days, that he is still the world’s best badminton player.
In the process, Olympic champion Lin could help the famous 116-year-old tournament clarify the confused picture at the top of the men’s game, at a time when the new Olympic qualifying period is only a few weeks away, Gade said.
Gade said badminton needs a period of competitive stability, which Lin and this year’s All-England Open might help provide.
“It’s been the strangest transformation recently,” said Gade, who retired at the 2012 Olympics after more than a decade-and-a-half at the top. “There’s a huge group of about 12 or 13 players who can beat each other, but hopefully we will see a much clearer picture before the Olympics. The game needs that.”
Although he is 31, Lin is still good enough to win the 2016 Olympics and capable of regaining the All-England title this week, despite being seeded only fifth, Gade said.
“I don’t see a big change if he is on top form. He is still the best player. He has shown that on several occasions. If there’s a question then it’s a question of whether he wants to play. It’s a strange period for him too. From the outside we can’t know what the reason is for him not playing,” Gade said, referring to Lin’s infrequent tournament appearances since changing his mind about retiring after the 2012 London Olympics.
Lin’s chances this week might be greater because Lee Chong-wei, the Malaysian who holds the All-England title, cannot defend it until doping allegations against him have been heard.
This delay in coming to a decision is harmful, Gade said.
“We need to move past the problem, whichever way we do it,” he said. “It’s impossible to say whether what happened was right or wrong, but we need a decision.”
Since Lee’s absence from the tour, Chen Long, the world champion from China, has become No. 1, though Gade does not rule out a fellow Dane this week becoming the first in 16 years to follow his All-England triumph.
“Jan [Jorgensen] is the closest,” Gade said of his second-seeded compatriot. “But there is a big group ... and he has to show he can be stable at this highest level.”
The women’s singles, though still dominated by China, is also less clear-cut than it was. Li Xuerui is seeded to regain a title which was a stepping stone to her winning the 2012 Olympics, and although Wang Shixian is seeded second in defense of the title, at least three serious contenders are non-Chinese.
One is Saina Nehwal, the third-seeded Indian who won the China Open, another is Caroline Marin, the sixth-seeded Spaniard who created badminton’s biggest shock by becoming world champion in August last year, and yet another is Ratchanok Intanon, the eighth-seeded Thai who became the 2013 world champion as a teenager.
Nevertheless, China is top-seeded in four of the five events after its players won 33 Super Series titles out of 65 last year. Zhao Yunlei, the most successful with eight Super Series titles and US$250,000 prize money, is seeded to win both women’s and mixed doubles titles.
Although China appears to have an insurmountable demographic advantage, Denmark, a nation of only five million, continues to show what is possible. The Danes have the second seeds in three events, three seeded players in the men’s singles, and a pair seeded in a fourth event.
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