KUALA LUMPUR: Lee Chong Wei is in Birmingham eager to make history at the All England.
The World No 2 wants to become the first Malaysian to win five All England crowns following successes in 2010, 2011, 2014, 2017, which equalled the record of former internationals Wong Peng Soon and Datuk Eddy Chong.
The 36-year-old, however, expects a rocky road ahead and believes it will be his toughest All England outing.
“Everyone wants to win the All England as it is the most prestigious tournament in the world. I am determined to be the first Malaysian to achieve five titles,’ said Chong Wei.
“However, I will not pressure myself thinking about winning my fifth crown. I prepared well and I hope I will be able to give my best in every round.
"Anyway, I am really happy that I have managed to maintain my form despite being one of the super seniors in world badminton. I will turn 36 later this year and it is actually great that I am still able to challenge for titles.”
Chong Wei will open his All England campaign against Brazil’s Ygor Coelho on Wednesday.
However, it will not be easy after the first round as he has Denmark's Jan Jorgensen, who is making a comeback from an injury, and five-time world champion Lin Dan of China in the same half of the draw.
“The draw looks tough but I am not in any pressure. I take it as a source of motivation.
“As I have mentioned before, my focus this year are the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, Thomas Cup (in Bangkok) and the Asian Games (Indonesia,” Chong Wei added.