Liew Daren Thomas Cup Malaysia Badminton

An amazing revelation awaits badminton fans. The team captain for the Thomas Cup Finals is Liew Daren, not as expected, world’s No. 1 Lee Chong Wei.


The determination of the team captain was made by all of the men's team members in the wake of registering with unified training camp on Monday.

The Thomas Cup Finals will be held in New Delhi, India from May 18-25. The team consists of Chong Wei Feng, Goh Soon Huat, Hoon Thien How-Tan Wee Kiong, Lim Khim Wah-Goh V Shem, Tan Boon Heong and Chan Peng Soon.

And for the Uber Cup Finals, doubles shuttler, Amelia Anscelly was announced as the team captain.

Still astonished with the announcement, Daren vows to give the best of his ability being the team captain and the third singles.

“I was surprised by the team’s choice but, I guess, it was also Chong Wei’s way of encouraging me to take up this role. I’ll do my best to support the team and facilitate communication between coaches and players,” Daren stated.

For the record, this will be Daren's second Thomas Cup Finals, however, this one could make – or break – his badminton career.

On the off chance that the tie goes the distance to the decider, the country’s pressure will be on Daren's shoulder to deliver expected results. Since winning the French Open title in 2012, Daren's form has been conflicting due to injuries.

Darren said, “I’m in better shape now,” referring to his nagging hamstring injury.

Daren at the Juara Stadium said, “Today, we had a gym session in the morning and three hours of tough training on court in the afternoon. It was tough but good. It will help me prepare for the Finals.”

Malaysia is in Group C with South Korea, Germany and the host country, India.

Of all the third singles players from all the top nations, Daren has a great record against everybody except for China. He has not beaten any players from China and has yet to play against South Korea's Hwang Jang-soo.

Record shows that he has beaten Indonesia's Simon Santoso, Japan's Takuma Euda, Denmark's Viktor Axelsen and India's R.m.v. Gurusaidutt.

“I have narrowed down all my possible opponents and will analyse their games. My first Finals in Wuhan two years ago gave me a lot of experience. I will be ready,” Daren added.

Daren, who was the second singles player at Wuhan in 2012, was compelled to play as the first singles against Lin Dan of China in a quarter-final tie in the absence of Chong Wei who was injured. Malaysia lost 3-0 to China that time.
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