BADMINTON: Duo hope Swiss Open title will be a morale booster

Tan Boon Heong (left) and Koo Kien Keat at the KLIA yesterday. — Pic: GOH THEAN HOWE

TAN Boon Heong was the only shuttler with a smile when the national badminton team arrived at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang yesterday.

However, it had nothing to do with his victory at last weekend's Swiss Open. He was happy because his luggage was not misplaced unlike his teammates.

As for Kien Keat and the rest, their luggage were lost in transit when they boarded the connecting flight from Singapore.

Now he hopes that lady luck will shine on him and Kien Keat after their victory in Switzerland.

This is their second Swiss Open title and also their first win for the year.
He sees the victory as a morale booster for himself and Kien Keat before the World Championships in August.

"The Swiss Open has taught us how to win again. We were more relaxed in the tournament and it paid dividends. The All England turned out to be disastrous as we were too tensed with our approach when facing tougher opponents," said Boon Heong.

Before the victory, the pair were on the low after two unconvincing quarter-final showings at the Malaysian Open and All-England.

"We were not expecting victory in the Swiss Open. There were many good pairs around but somehow we made it count.

"Kien Keat and I should be feeling confident after this victory but there're areas we need to improve on. Of course, our major goal is the World Championships."

Kien Keat-Boon Heong, the World No 6, rose to stardom after winning the men's doubles title at the 2006 Doha Asian Games.

The victory, sparked a fantastic run in the next year with six titles including the All England and Denmark Open.

Kien Keat-Boon Heong are unlikely to compete in any tournaments till the Sudirman Cup in May.

Source: NST online