BY T. AVINESHWARANTHE STAR
PETALING JAYA: There was heartbreak yet again for Malaysian shuttler Datuk Lee Chong Wei after he lost in the final of the World Championships on Sunday.
The 32-year-old Malaysian shuttler lost 21-14 and 21-17 to defending champion Chen Long of China at the Istora Senayan Stadium in Jakarta. In the earlier matches, Carolina Marin from Spain retained her women’s singles title by beating India’s Sania Nehwal while Chinese pair Zhang Nan and Zhao Yunlei bagged the mixed doubles title by beating fellow countrymen Liu Cheng and Bao Yixin.
Heartfelt apology from Hendrawan after final failure
BY RAJES PAUL
THE STAR
Hendrawan (left) took charge of Chong Wei since May.
JAKARTA: Former world champion Hendrawan of Indonesia delivered a grovelling apology after he could not produce a world champion for Malaysia.
“I promised to deliver but I did not. I am sorry,” said the 2001 world champion Hendrawan after Lee Chong Wei’s 14-17, 17-21 loss to Chen Long of China at the World Championships in Jakarta.
Hendrawan was in charge of Chong Wei since he came back from an eight-month doping ban in May.
“To be honest, it’s not easy to prepare Chong Wei for a big event in just three months. He tried his best but today Chen Long was superior than him in all departments,” said Hendrawan. “We tried to change our game plan during the match but nothing worked.”
Hendrawan said he would now focus on restoring Chong Wei’s confidence ahead of the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro next year.
“There is a lot of work ahead of us. Age is a factor for Chong Wei,” he said.
“We could see that towards the end of the match against Chen Long. Chong Wei was physically tested. It will not get any easier. It all depends on how much Chong Wei wants to push in the next one year,” he added.
