KUALA LUMPUR: Former world champion Taufik Hidayat wants the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to investigate Lin Dan’s Malaysia Open quarter-finals injury pullout, something top seed Lee Chong Wei also finds intriguing.
China’s Lin gave a walkover to compatriot Chen Long citing an abdominal injury, but Indonesian Hidayat remains unconvinced.
“I am not sure how serious his injury is, but I find it very unsporting for him to concede a walkover,” Hidayat was quoted as saying by the Star newspaper on Saturday.
“It is high time that BWF look into this matter because it is not good for the sport. Maybe, they should prevent him from going to back-to-back tournaments if he skips one.”
Chong Wei, who takes on Chen in the semi-finals, had similar doubts about Lin’s injury, which he felt could be the Chinese shuttler’s ploy to avoid competing against compatriots. — Reuters
“All the fans had waited for a semi-final match between Lin Dan and me but it is not happening. I am sure the fans will be upset but I cannot do anything about it,” he said.
“Maybe the BWF should look into this. But then, what can the world body do if a player does not want to play? He said that he is injured but it could be a tactical ploy.”
Lin had walked out of his matches against fellow Chinese players in China Open and Hong Kong Open as well, the report said.