Ipoh: Former Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) player and No. 3 seed Daren Liew put No. 8 seed Lim Chi Wing to a stern test but Lim ultimately came through 17-21, 21-11, 30-29 to reach the final of Malaysian National Championships final on Friday.
Lim who won the Malaysia Circuit GP Finals in December last year, flirted with mortality in Ipoh today when Daren Liew was once ahead with 17-10 in the decider. Lim came perilously close to a semi-final defeat by the former French Open champion Daren Liew, saving 9 match points before triumphing by 1 point in the decider to book his place in Saturday’s final.
Despite the defeat, Liew insisted he was not disappointed but referred to his defeat as a matter of less fortunate.
“I’m not angry nor am I frustrated. I think my luck is not good enough and I’ll try to get the national championships title next year,” said Liew.
For Lim, after coming off a grueling three-set match against Liew, will make sure he won’t let victory slip through his fingers in the final against Misbun Ramdan on Saturday.
“This win gives me confidence to win in the final tomorrow,” said Lim after the match.
Meanwhile, the 2012 Malaysian champion Misbun Ramdan was pushed all the way by BAM player Chong Yee Han before making a comeback in the decider to beat Chong 21-9, 27-29, 21-11.
“My goal is to get past the qualifications but thankfully I managed to get to this point, so I will follow my dad’s (Misbun Sidek – Lee Chong Wei’s former coach) advice to enjoy the game and play the best,” said Misbun Ramdan.
In mixed doubles competition, scratch pair Chan Peng Soon/Chow Mei Kuan pulled off the biggest upset in the semi-finals by knocking off No. 1 seeds Tan Kian Meng/Lai Pei Jing 21-17, 19-21, 21-19 in 73 minutes. Chan/Chow will play No. 2 seeds Goh Soon Huat/Shevon Jemie Lai in the final.
