World number one Lee Chong Wei revealed that Chinese legend Lin Dan and himself are not thinking about retirement from badminton but that both of them would want to stay on "for a little longer".
The two shuttlers, who are at the twilight of their illustrious careers, reigned supreme once again as they reached the final of Malaysia Superseries Premier in Kuching on Sunday. The local shuttler, who had a sea of supporters cheering him, lost to Lin in straight games in the title match, that went on for 55 minutes.
Lin clinched his maiden Malaysia Open crown, a title that had been eluding him ever since he reached the final of 2005 edition, in which he lost to Chong Wei. Yesterday's loss was also the first time the numero uno had succumbed in the final of the Superseries Premier event in 14 years, with his last defeat coming against China's Chen Hong in 2003.
Despite their passing years, both Lin (33) and Chong Wei (34) have been constantly outclassing the younger shuttlers in the circuit. Even after partially recovering from a knee injury he suffered in February, the Malaysian shuttler battled against odds to win the All England Championships last month.
"It looks like these two old players – Lin Dan and I – are going to stay on a little longer," Chong Wei said, as quoted by The Star.
Lin, on the other hand, is motivated to continue playing badminton so that his son Xiao Yu, who is an year old now, can see him action. However, the 33-year-old reveals that he will pick and choose his tournament appearances as he wants to spend time with his family.
The two-time Olympic champion also revealed the his goals are different from that of Chong Wei's as the latter, according to him, will always feel the pressure of not winning a world title. Notably, both the shuttlers will be skipping Singapore Open, starting 12 April.
"I want my son to see me play. He is very young now ... I guess I have to just play on. I want to spend as much time as possible with my son. So this papa will have to be selective of his tournaments," Lin said.
"Seriously, Chong Wei and I have different missions. I have won every badminton title in the world, so I am OK if I do not qualify for the World Championships or do not win any more Open titles. Chong Wei has not won a world title or an Olympic title, so there'll always be pressure for him."
