Super Dan’s best is still to come, muses former rival Peter Gade ahead of All-England Open

The best of Lin Dan, twice an Olympic men’s singles gold medallist and this week seeking a sixth All-England Open title at the age of 32, is still to come, according to Peter Gade.

Danish former All-England champion Gade is the longest lasting top level player of the modern era.

If Gade is right, the world’s oldest tournament, which starts in Birmingham on Wednesday, could see one of its greatest legends parading his unique skills in all their unpredictable brilliance once more.

Whether such a revival after three lower-key years does happen for Lin, known as ‘Super Dan’, this week, or instead when he is chasing a record-breaking third gold at the Games in Rio in August, is a burning question.

“Lin Dan has had the Olympics in his mind for a long time, and a lot of things that have happened have been about that,” said Gade, who is now France’s national coach.

By limiting travel and competition, Lin may have been preserving his 32-year-old body.

“We have still to see the best of Lin Dan,” Gade reckoned. “He will come alive in a different way for the Olympics, I think. But whether he will open up now and we see his best this week, we don’t know.”