The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Nadal, Federer braced for Djokovic, Murray bids
- Chong Wei hopes birth of first son will bring renewed strength
- Change of plans for Malaysian Open due to elections
| Nadal, Federer braced for Djokovic, Murray bids Posted: 11 Apr 2013 06:38 PM PDT PARIS: It's 10 years since the rankings didn't feature either Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer in the top two, but current leading men, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, still face a test of claycourt nerve. On Sunday, Nadal begins his bid for a ninth successive Monte Carlo Masters title. The 26-year-old Spaniard, who was seven months out of action with a knee injury, has already hammered home his claycourt dominance in 2013 with comeback titles at Sao Paulo and Acapulco. The seven-time French Open champion romped through the Latin American claycourt swing with a 12-1 record. His clay record for the last 12 months reads 35-2, although his fitness faces another gruelling challenge on European clay this year. Nadal, currently the world number five, has a mountain of points to defend after he clinched Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Rome and the French Open in 2012. His only blip last year was a last-16 defeat to compatriot Fernando Verdasco in Madrid on the hated blue clay which has since been banned. Nadal is desperate to return to clay on which has won 38 of his 53 career titles. "I missed the feeling of going onto a big stadium with all the people, all this atmosphere that makes you feel something different," said Nadal who added the Indian Wells Masters hardcourt title to his CV in March. "And the feeling of victory, the feeling of competition, this adrenaline in life." Federer, with his 32nd birthday fast approaching, is sitting out Monte Carlo, but his claycourt record - 10 titles on the surface - is 15-2 over the past 12 months. That puts him second only to Nadal, having captured the Madrid crown in 2012 before succumbing to Djokovic in the semi-finals in Rome and Roland Garros. World number one Djokovic, the runner-up to Nadal at Monte Carlo in 2009 and 2012, goes into the tournament confident that a right ankle injury sustained on Davis Cup duty won't limit his chances. "After seeing the results of all the tests we did, I am really positive and strong," Djokovic wrote on his Facebook page. "I'm doing the best I can with my team to recover fast and be ready for the upcoming tournaments." Djokovic's defeat to Nadal in the French Open final last year ended his hopes of completing a career Grand Slam. The Serb failed to lift a claycourt title in 2012 having swept Rome, Madrid and Belgrade 12 months earlier. Murray remains an enigma on clay. The US Open and Olympic champion has collected 26 career titles but has never reached a claycourt final, let alone lift a trophy. Last year, the Scot managed just quarter-final runs at the French Open, Monte Carlo and Barcelona. "My consistency has been better over the last few months. The rankings obviously reflect that," said Murray. "So I will try and keep working hard during the clay and hopefully I can go higher." - AFP |
| Chong Wei hopes birth of first son will bring renewed strength Posted: 11 Apr 2013 04:42 PM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: World No. 1 singles shuttler Lee Chong Wei hopes to draw inspiration from the birth of his first-born to stay ahead of a new generation of players. Today will be a momentous day for the 30-year-old Chong Wei as his wife Wong Mew Choo is scheduled to give birth to their first child – a baby boy – via Caesarean section. And the couple has already decided to name the baby Kingston. Although thrilled with the idea of being a father, Chong Wei admitted that the last few weeks had been quite stressful for him – having to leave Mew Choo alone several times while he went looking for more titles for Malaysia in international tournaments. And it didn't help matters when he fell sick for almost 10 days after losing to China's Chen Long in the final of the All-England in Birmingham in March. He still went on to compete in the Australian Open Grand Prix Gold last week, where he lost to Tian Houwei, another of China's younger players, in the semi-finals. Chong Wei, the Malaysian Open and Korean Open champion, has vowed to bounce back stronger after the birth of his son. "It was not easy for me to leave Mew Choo alone – especially at this stage of her pregnancy. She was understanding and told me to stay focused on my tournaments ... but I kept thinking about her and our unborn child," said Chong Wei. "Many felt that I should not have gone for the Australian Open ... some even questioned my loss to the young Chinese player. "As a player, there are a lot of planning required for the year. I made a decision to go for the Australian Open, so I have to accept the defeat. But rest assured that I'm focused on one single mission – winning the World Championships in Guangzhou (in August). "It hasn't been easy trying to maintain the my world No. 1 ranking for the last four years ... I've had to keep fending off all types of players – old and new – who are determined to beat me. I have to watch my back in every round of every tournament because everyone is after my scalp. "It's tough and challenging. I have to keep training hard to maintain my fitness level and continue to motivate myself. This is my job and I'm glad that Mew Choo is very understanding." In fact, Mew Choo has even encouraged Chong Wei not to back out from his next two back-to-back assignments – the India Open Super Series and Malay-sian Open Grand Prix Gold. The India Open is in New Delhi from April 23-28 while the Malaysian Open GP will be at the Putra Stadium from April 30-May 4. "I was the finalist at the India Open last year (losing to Shon Wan-ho of South Korea) and won the home title. I want to maintain that to ensure that my ranking does not drop. It will also put me on the right track ahead of the World Championships. "For now, I'm just looking forward to the arrival of my son." |
| Change of plans for Malaysian Open due to elections Posted: 11 Apr 2013 04:42 PM PDT KUALA LUMPUR: The duration of the Malaysian Open Grand Prix Gold badminton tournament will be shortened and the venue shifted from Pahang to Kuala Lumpur because it clashes with the general election. The Malaysian GP Gold, which will see the participation of local "king" and defending champion Lee Chong Wei and several top players from Indonesia, Thailand and India, is from April 30-May 5. The polling day is May 5. Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) secretary Ng Chin Chai said yesterday they had written to the Badminton World Federation (BWF) about their "sticky" situation. He said they had given BWF a few options and were waiting for the green light. Once confirmed, BAM will inform all the participating countries. "The Sukpa Indoor Stadium in Pahang will be used for the elections and we have no choice but to shift the venue. We plan to host it at the Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil," said Chin Chai. "We can't postpone the tournament to another week but we can shorten it by a day. If approved, the final of our GP Gold will be on Saturday (May 4). "We can start the first round on Tuesday, the day we usually hold the qualifying round matches. Some countries have booked their flights ... but they'll have to make the necessary adjustments." Chong Wei is the top seed for the tournament. The other seeded players include Indonesians Sony Dwi Kuncoro (2nd), Tommy Sugiarto (6th) and Simon Santoso (7th); Vietnam's Nguyen Tien Minh (3rd); Malaysians Liew Daren (4th) and Chong Wei Feng (5th). |
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