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Mumbai Masters: Lee Chong Wei
Record : Played : 5, Won : 5, Lost : 0
Lee Chog Wei put in a performance that endorsed his status as World NO.1 (Getty Images)
A 5-0 record through the IBL; nothing less was expected from the World No.1 as he delivered what his team owners had bought him for. An injury scare for the first two matches resulted in the owners and organizers sweating it out on whether the big name would make it for the league at all.
He made his first appearance in Mumbai and I was lucky enough to watch the champion play live as he made short work of Daren Liew in the singles. He teamed up with Tine Baun for the mixed doubles , in what turned out to be the only time he played mixed doubles in the tournament after he seemed to realise that it was not really up his alley. In the rest of the matches, Lee Chong Wei managed to give a boost to some of the young stars of Indian badminton, as he dropped a game each to both Ajay Jayaram and K. Srikanth. But eventually, the champion did win all matches without too much of an effort.
His shining performances aside, I believe that the IBL has to be thanked for bringing the World No.1 to Indian badminton courts, giving the spectators a chance to witness an extraordinary talent and the Indian youngsters a chance that they might have never got otherwise to play against him. As for victories and records, Chong Wei should hope that his teammates and owners give him better support to help himself to one more title in the form of an IBL winner next year.
