Chong Wei ready to rise in Denmark again

KUALA LUMPUR: Lee Chong Wei has wiped out all the bad memories in Denmark from his mind.

Last year, the former world No. 1 shuttler failed a dope test after his semi-final at the World Championships in Copenhagen in August. Besides being banned for eight months, Chong Wei’s silver medal, which was awarded to him for finishing runner-up to Chen Long of China, was forfeited.

The 32-year-old is now back in the Scandinavian country – the site of the darkest episode in his career – to compete in the Denmark Open, which begins in Odense on Wednesday.

“I’m not feeling nervous or anything coming back here again,” confessed Chong Wei in a telephone interview from Odense.

“It’s all forgotten. But I want to do much better and enjoy a better outing this time.”

The world No. 25 has won the Denmark Open three times – in 2005, 2006 and 2012.

Chong Wei said his focus would be to break into the world’s top 20 by doing well in Europe.

After the Denmark Open, he will compete at next week’s France Open in Paris.

“I did not achieve good results at the last two Superseries (in Japan and South Korea). It broke my momentum but I’m determined to get back my rhythm.

“My condition is okay and I hope to play with more confidence. I just want to improve my world ranking,” he said.

Chong Wei is in the same half of the draw with top seed Chen Long and nemesis Lin Dan of China, but he is not making a big hue and cry over the tough draw.

“It doesn’t matter if I meet them early or later in the tournament. I will just have to face them with confidence,” said Chong Wei.

“My plan is simple ... just enjoy every match in Denmark,” he added.

The father of two has been drawn to play a tricky first-round match against P. Kashyap of India. If Chong Wei wins, he will probably take on Wei Nan of Hong Kong in the second round.

Chong Wei is then tipped to meet Chen Long in the quarter-finals. He lost to the Chinese star in the final of the World Championships in Jakarta in August.

If he can pull the rug from under defending champion Chen Long, Chong Wei may meet Lin Dan in the semi-finals.

Second seed Jan O Jorgensen of Denmark heads the lower half of the draw. The other notable players in the half are K. Srikanth of India and Japan’s Kento Momota.