French Open: ‘I Want to be Champion’
“Champion” was Lee Cheuk Yiu’s short but firm reply when asked what he intends to achieve after marching into his first HSBC BWF World Tour semifinal in a year at YONEX French Open 2022.
· PREM KUMAR
The Hong Kong China player has not been among the best four men’s singles players at any tournament since losing to Viktor Axelsen in last October’s Denmark Open semis.
Yesterday, despite being pushed by the stubborn Lu Guang Zu, the world No.15 refused to give in, coming through 21-14 11-21 21-18 after 65 intense minutes. Afterwards, he vowed to remain focused on the task ahead.
“Happy (to end my wait) but not too excited. There’s another match so my priority is to warm down properly, then eat and rest well,” said the 26-year-old, whose battles all went the distance in Paris.