June Wei needs gem of a show against Gemke if battle goes down to wire
CHENGDU: If shuttler Cheam June Wei (pic) is fielded as the third singles against Denmark, he can be the hero or the zero.

The tie between Malaysia and the European giants are expected to go down to the wire when they clash in the final Group D fixture in the Thomas Cup Finals in Chengdu, China.

A more experienced June Wei may be considered ahead of greenhorn Justin Hoh for the job.

If selected, June Wei has promised to go all the way.

He said seeing his teammates impress in the Thomas Cup Finals against Hong Kong earlier has lit a fire in him.

“I’m inspired to do well just like Jun Hao and Justin,” said June Wei, who is back in the team after he was overlooked for the last edition in 2022.

“(Leong) Jun Hao played very well against Angus and it was Justin’s first Thomas Cup and he handled the pressure very well, so credit to both of them.

“Our team spirit is very high after the match. Nobody expected us to win by such a big margin.”

The independent player cheered on from the sidelines as Jun Hao and Justin defied expectations to propel Malaysia to a 5-0 win over Hong Kong in the opening match.

World No. 63 June Wei did play against Algeria and did his part as Malaysia pulled off a 5-0 win on Sunday.

June Wei, who will likely face world No. 26 Rasmus Gemke, is now hungry to prove himself as well.

“As for me, I’m ready to play against Denmark if I’m selected. I will try to grab the opportunity to play well and get a point for the team,” added June Wei.

On his possible match against Gemke, June Wei said: “Both of us are from the same batch and played each other when we were juniors.

They crossed swords once in the 2014 German Junior Open, which June Wei won.

“He, howeve,r has had better results than me since then and is higher ranked but he will also have more pressure to win. I will just fight hard.”

Denmark also have the option of fielding Magnus Johannesen. The 22-year-old made heads turn when he upset national No. 1 Lee Zii Jia in the first round of the French Open last month.
Badminton,Cheam June Wei,Thomas Cup Finals
CHENGDU: If shuttler Cheam June Wei is fielded as the third singles against Denmark, he can be the hero or the zero.