Kuala Lumpur: The Rio Olympic champion and World No. 2 Chen Long of China has decided to give up on the wild card granted by Badminton World Federation (BWF) that allowed him to compete for the USD$1 million Superseries Finals held in Dubai from Dec 14-18.
With Chen’s absence, Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) technical director Morten Frost is looking forward to seeing a good result from World No. 1 men’s singles player Lee Chong Wei.
“It’s not a surprise that Chen Long has pulled out. A lot of players peaked at the Olympics, and would be hard for them to maintain their forms for the rest of the season,” said Frost.
Chen’s withdrawal opened up the way for Hong Kong’s 35-year-old Hu Yun to enter the tournament as Chen’s replacement.
“This will be Hu’s fourth appearance at the finals and it’s also a big recognition to the veteran,” said Hong Kong coach Tim He Yiming.
In women’s doubles, Malaysian women’s doubles pair Vivian Hoo/Woon Khe Wei who were ranked ninth in the Superseries ranking, became one of the eight qualifiers for the event following the withdrawal of Indonesia’s Nitya Krishinda Maheswari-Greysia Polii.
Men’s doubles pair Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong was another Malaysian shuttlers to play at the Finals.
Meanwhile, the Rio Olympic men’s doubles champion Fu Haifeng/ Zhang Nan have also decided to skip the event. Their vacated spot was replaced by Mathias Boe / Carsten Mogensen of Denmark.
The following is a list of players that will participate in the 2016 BWF Superseries Finals:
Men’s Singles:
Seeds
1. Jan Ø. Jørgensen (Denmark)
2. Son Wan-ho (South Korea)
3. Tian Houwei (China)
4. Ng Ka Long (Hong Kong)
5. Viktor Axelsen (Denmark)
6. Marc Zwiebler (Germany)
7. Lee Chong Wei (Malaysia)
8. Hu Yun (Hong Kong)
Withdrawn
Chen Long (China, Wild Card as Olympic Gold Medalist 2016)
Women’s Singles:
Seeds
1. Tai Tzu-ying (Chinese Taipei)
2. Akane Yamaguchi (Japan)
3. Sun Yu (China)
4. Sung Ji-hyun (South Korea)
5. Ratchanok Intanon (Thailand)
6. He Bingjiao (China)
7. Carolina Marin (Spain)
8. Pusarla Venkata Sindhu (India)
Men’s Doubles:
Seeds
1. Takeshi Kamura / Keigo Sonoda (Japan)
2. Goh V Shem / Tan Wee Kiong (Malaysia)
3. Chai Biao / Hong Wei (China)
4. Marcus Fernaldi Gideon / Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo (Indonesia)
5. Angga Pratama / Ricky Karanda Suwardi (Indonesia)
6. Li Junhui / Liu Yuchen (China)
7. Mads Conrad-Petersen / Mads Pieler Kolding (Denmark)
8. Mathias Boe / Carsten Mogensen (Denmark)
Withdrawn
Fu Haifeng / Zhang Nan (China, Wild Card as Olympic Gold Medalist 2016)
Women’s Doubles:
Seeds
1. Misaki Matsutomo / Ayaka Takahashi (Japan)
2. Christinna Pedersen / Kamilla Rytter Juhl (Denmark)
3. Jung Kyung-eun / Shin Seung-chan (South Korea)
4. Chang Ye-na / Lee So-Hee (South Korea)
5. Naoko Fukuman / Kurumi Yonao (Japan)
6. Luo Ying / Luo Yu (China)
7. Chen Qingchen / Jia Yifan (China)
8. Woon Khe Wei / Vivian Hoo Kah Mun (Malaysia)
Withdrawn
Nitya Krishinda Maheswari / Greysia Polii (Indonesia)
Mixed Doubles:
Seeds
1. Ko Sung-hyun / Kim Ha-na (South Korea)
2. Lu Kai / Huang Yaqiong (China)
3. Joachim Fischer Nielsen / Christinna Pedersen (Denmark)
4. Zheng Siwei / Chen Qingchen (China)
5. Tontowi Ahmad / Liliyana Natsir (Indonesia)
6. Praveen Jordan / Debby Susanto (Indonesia)
7. Chris Adcock / Gabrielle Adcock (England)
8. Kenta Kazuno / Ayane Kurihara (Japan)
