Full of potential: Leong Jun Hao has shown promising signs when he goes up against world’s top players.
PETALING JAYA: Men’s singles shuttler Leong Jun Hao is racing against time to remove his slow-starter tag for good.
Jun Hao is aware of it and is bent on fixing the issue before the Sudirman Cup starting from April 27-May 4 in Xiamen, China.
On paper, Jun Hao may not have produced impressive results in the tournaments he has competed in this year, but the 25-year-old has shown promising signs when going up against the world’s top players.
In most matches, he has shown that he can fight back despite trailing early, but it also exposes a flaw in his game, which is the difficulty he faces in finding his rhythm quickly.
Jun Hao admitted that his tendency to analyse his opponents’ style of play early in the match often costs him precious time, which sometimes leads to him falling behind.
“I don’t think it’s really about being a slow starter, but I usually try to read my opponents’ game at the beginning and that delays me from finding my own rhythm,” said Jun Hao, who is currently fine-tuning this aspect of his game under the guidance of Kenneth Jonassen.
“I’m working on this with my coach and I hope I can overcome it soon.”
Jun Hao will shoulder a big responsibility as Malaysia’s first-choice men’s singles player in the Sudirman Cup.
This comes following the absence of Lee Zii Jia, who is recovering from an injury, while Ng Tze Yong is still not fully fit.
Despite the pressure, Jun Hao is regarded as a team event specialist and is ready to step up to the challenge.
Malaysia have been drawn in Group C with Japan, Australia and France.
“Every match is very important for the team, and right now we are preparing as best as we can for the competition in Ningbo.
“And because of their absence, I now have to step up and give my best performance since they are still in the process of recovering,” he added.
