Hans-Kristian Vittinghus, a 28-year old from Denmark, will arrive in Dubai next week ahead of the season-ending BWF Destination Dubai World Superseries Finals as the seventh placed qualifier, and believes he has the ability to cause some major upsets to win a trophy he’s never managed to lay his hands on before.
Only the eight highest-ranked eligible shuttlers have qualified for the seventh edition of the Superseries Finals, which will be staged at the Hamdan Sports Complex from December 17-21, and Vittinghus will be among those vying for a share of the USD 1million prize money on offer in this edition of the tournament.
The three-time Norwegian International champion and two-time European Team Championship gold-medalist reached as far as the semi-finals of the 2012 edition of the Superseries Finals, but is aiming for nothing less than the title this time around. After failing to qualify for last year’s event, the Frederikshavn-born player is looking to make the most of his appearance in Dubai.
Discussing his chances, Vittinghus said: “In all honesty, I think I'm probably one of the biggest underdogs in the men's singles competition, so it's obvious for me I can't take a semi-final place for granted. But I made the semi-final of the 2012 edition, so I know it's possible.
"Back then, I progressed on a better game-difference, so I for one know how important it is to try your best in every single game and fight for every single point. But that's how I always play, which is something I'm proud of and intend to keep on doing. So I'll just go out there and give it my best shot from the very start till the end. Let's just hope the end will not be until the final on Sunday.”
The other men’s singles contenders for this year’s Superseries Finals are world champion Chen Long of China, Indonesia Open champion and Vittinghus’ compatriot Jan O Jorgensen of Denmark, China Open champion Kidambi Srikanth of India, Hong Kong Open champion Son Wan Ho of Korea, Kento Momota and Kenichi Tago of Japan and Tommy Sugiarto of Indonesia.
Happy to be in this elite mix, Vittinghus said: “I've had three main goals of the year. One of them was to qualify for Destination Dubai, with the other two being to perform well at All England and World Championships. So I'm very happy to be here, and it's of course an important tournament to me. It's a chance to finish what has been my best year to date on a high. I think the key to winning this event is to stay mentally tough, be consistent and do everything possible to play my best badminton ever.”
This year has been a more open one than many before, with lots of different players winning MetLife BWF World Superseries titles – the likes of Simon Santoso, Jan Jorgensen, Chou Tien-Chen, K Srikanth and Shon Wan-Ho, apart from the big names who usually dominate. That suggests this edition of the BWF Destination Dubai World Superseries Finals could be a lot more open than the ones before.
Assessing the draw, Vittinghus said: “It's great to see we've had seven different winners of Superseries events in men's singles. It just goes to show how small the difference is, between the top players. I believe the Finals have always been an open show, but it might be even more open this year with both Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan out of it. None of us eight who have qualified have showed the same kind of consistency as those two, and since I believe this is the key to winning, it's hard to say who will run away with the honours this time.”
Vittinghus, however, feels he still has a chance and can cause some upsets. Looking forward to displaying his prowess here next week, he said: “I'm very excited to be playing in Dubai and visiting the city for the first time. I hope there will be a great turnout and I'm looking forward to meet all the fans. I also have a couple of friends traveling from Denmark to support me and the other Danes, so I'm sure it will be a great experience for me.”
Tickets for December’s BWF Destination Dubai World Superseries Finals are on sale at www.ticketmaster.ae, Prices start from AED 20, with those under 18 years entering for free when accompanied by a ticketed adult. For more information about the event go to http://www.destinationdubai.ae/
