Kuala Lumpur
Fifteen years ago in a packed Kuala Lumpur stadium, rising stars Lin Dan and Lee Chong Wei met in a final for the first time, setting the stage for what would become badminton’s greatest rivalry.
Malaysia’s Lee, then 22, fell to the floor, punched the air and blew kisses to the crowd after his see-sawing, 88-minute 17-15, 9-15, 15-9 victory, when he fought back from behind in the first and last games.
“Everyone saw how (Lin) played,” said Lee, who was the defending champion, after his win at the Kuala Lumpur Badminton Stadium.
“He is excellent in attack and his overhead smashes and forehand crosscourt shots are dangerous. So it is very satisfying to beat him.”
It was a fittingly tense start for a match-up that would span two Olympic finals and two world championship deciders, and drew a new generation of fans.
But the match would remain one of the high points for Lee, who lost his four world and Olympic finals against the Chinese great and retired last year without winning either of the sport’s top two titles.
“Their rivalry happened in a period when badminton needed inspiration,” K.M. Boopathy, a veteran Malaysian sports journalist who watched the 2005 game, told AFP.
“They managed to make the sport extremely popular.” —APP