Beijing: China’s 2016 Rio Olympics gold medalist Chen Long and former World No. 2 Shi Yuqi were not picked to represent China at the upcoming 2022 Thomas Cup Finals that will be held in Bangkok, from May 8 to May 15, 2022.
Among all the 2022 Thomas Cup players announced by the Chinese Badminton Association on Friday, only Liu Yuchen had competed in the Olympic Games.
Without Chen Long and Shi Yuqi, Lu Guangzu, Zhao Junpeng, Li Shifeng, Weng Hongyang, and Sun Feixiang would shoulder the heavy responsibility in the men’s singles department. Liu Yuchen/Ou Xuanyi, He Jiting/Zhou Haodong, and Tan Qiang/Ren Xiangyu will be playing in the men’s doubles category.
Former world champion Liu Cheng was also included in the roster but his partner and former Olympic champion Zhang Nan was not selected.
China’s mixed doubles players such as the Tokyo Olympic champion Wang Yilyu and former World No. 1 Zheng Siwei who are capable of contributing a point for China in the men’s doubles category were also not chosen.
Compared to the Thomas Cup squad, China’s Uber Cup squad has a more well-balanced lineup with a mix of veteran and junior players and it’s spearheaded by Tokyo Olympics women’s singles gold medalist – Chen Yufei, and the Tokyo Olympics mixed doubles gold medalist – Huang Dongping.
China has been drawn into Group B alongside Denmark, France, and Algeria in the Thomas Cup draw while it was grouped with Chinese Taipei, Spain, and Australia in the Group B of the Uber Cup draw.
Here’s the roster for China’s Thomas and Uber Cup squads:
Thomas Cup:
1. Lu Guangzu
2. Zhao Junpeng
3. Li Shifeng
4. Weng Hongyang
5. He Jiting
6. Zhou Haodong
7. Liu Yuchen
8. Ou Xuanyi
9. Tan Qiang
10. Ren Xiangyu
11. Sun Feixiang
12. Liu Cheng
Uber Cup:
1. Chen Yufei
2. He Bingjiao
3. Zhang Yiman
4. Wang Zhiyi
5. Chen Qingchen
6. Jia Yifan
7. Du Yue
8. Li Wenmei
9. Zheng Yu
10. Huang Dongping
11. Han Yue
12. Zhang Shuxian
