Loh skips last tourney to focus on SEA Games

A spot in the season-ending Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour Finals may still be within Loh Kean Yew’s reach, but the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) has decided to pull him out of the Australian Open - the last tournament in the qualifying period — to let him focus on preparing for the SEA Games.

- David Lee

Believing that a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, it is hoping that by doing so, the 28-year-old, who has two SEA Games silver medals, can become the first Singaporean to win the men’s singles title since Wong Shoon Keat triumphed on home soil in 1983.

SBA head of pathways and performance Vanessa Neo said: "After careful consideration, the SBA decided that Kean Yew will not take part in the Australian Open in order to focus fully on preparations for the SEA Games. We believe this approach will ensure optimal performance and readiness for the Games."

On Nov 14, world No. 9 Loh lost 21-13, 21-17 to India’s 15th-ranked Lakshya Sen in the quarterfinals of the US$475,000 (S$618,400) Kumamoto Masters in Japan.

With 5,040 points added to his tally, Loh is expected to remain in 11th place in the BWF World Tour ranking, which is based on a player or pair’s best 14 results from its tournaments during the qualifying period from the Syed Modi International (Nov 26-Dec 1, 2024) to the Nov 18-23 Australian Open.

The season’s top eight singles and doubles players from this ranking will qualify for the US$3 million BWF World Tour Finals, which takes place in Hangzhou, China from Dec 17 to 21.