Denmark shuttler Jan O Jorgensen paid attention to his coach Kenneth Jonassen during training session at the Malawi Stadium yesterday.-Art Chen. 3 April 2016. Reporter: TAN MING WAIÂ
SHAH ALAM: Shuttler Jan O Jorgensen is relishing the prospect of taking on Lin Dan again at the Celcom Axiata Malaysian Open - just four weeks after losing to the Chinese superstar at the All-England.
The 28-year-old Dane, the world No. 5, will open his men’s singles campaign against Ihsan Maulana Mustofa of Indonesia on Wednesday. Barring an upset, a quarter-final blockbuster between Jorgensen and Lin Dan is on the cards at the Malawati Stadium here on Friday.
The duo were involved in an epic semi-final last year with Lin Dan prevailing 14-21, 21-19, 21-17 after an 80-minute marathon clash.
“It’s always difficult to play against Lin Dan. If he’s in the right mood, it’s going to be even harder to beat him,” said Jorgensen after an official training session at the Malawati Stadium on Monday.
“Lin Dan may have lost early (in the second round of the Indian Open last week), but I think it’s normal.
With everybody packing their schedule with so many tournaments prior to the Olympics, you are bound to suffer ups and downs. Lin Dan is still the one to beat on any given day.
“I’m looking forward to make the quarter-finals and play another great match against him,” added Jorgensen, who has beaten two-time Olympic champion Lin Dan four times in 12 clashes.
Having been a semi-finalist in all his three previous visits to Malaysia, Jorgensen now hopes to cross the line as a winner.
He said he could have done better with just nine titles in his career.
“The presence of the ‘Big Three’ (Lee Chong Wei, Lin Dan and Chen Long) has made titles hard to come by, not just for me but the others too.
“Of course I would love to win more titles. But it’s tough when you’re in the same era as Chong Wei and Lin Dan, arguably the two best men’s singles shuttlers in the history right now.
“Then you also have Chen Long who is not bad as well. These three guys are the favourites to win the gold at the Rio Olympics (in August).”
