Chong Wei identifies his successors as top Malaysian shuttlers

GEORGE TOWN: Badminton ace Datuk Lee Chong Wei has tipped national junior shuttlers Lee Zii Jia, Cheam June Wei and Tan Jia Wei as his worthy replacements once he retires from the international scene.
The 36-year-old Penangite said he is happy to see the young shuttlers step up their games and rise to the occasion, especially Zii Jia, June Wei and Jia Wei.
"We need to groom these young players, encourage them to work hard to achieve their goals and I am happy to see that they have beefed up their games in the past few years," he told reporters after receiving a cash incentive from the Penang government, here today.
He also hoped that all the juniors would continue to move up as he's looking forward to see them improving their world rankings so that they can compete in more Open tournaments.
The current world number seven in men's singles also urged Malaysian shuttlers to move on from the national team's Thomas Cup 1-3 loss to Indonesia and prepare themselves for the next big tournament.
"We must accept the Thomas Cup defeat and look forward to other tournaments to bounce back," he added.
At the Thomas Cup finals in Bangkok last week, Chong Wei showed he had not lost his touch when he won all his matches against Russia and Denmark in Group D and against Indonesia in the quarter-finals.
However, Chong Wei again hinted that he may retire after the Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, from Aug 19-28.
He said his next tournament will be the Malaysian Open from June 26-July 1 at the Axiata Arena in Bukit Jalil then followed by the Indonesian Open from July 3-8, World Championships in Nanjing, China, from July 30-Aug 5 and the Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, from Aug 19-28.
"I will give my best in the Asian Games in what would be my last Asian Games prior to my retirement," he said. — Bernama