KUALA LUMPUR: Former world champion Kento Momota marked his return to competitive badminton by winning the Lin Dan Cup in Wuhan, China, on Sunday, securing his first tournament title since retiring from international competition 30 months ago.
The 32-year-old Japanese, who accepted a personal invitation from badminton great Lin Dan to participate in the invitational event, defeated former Chinese national player Wang Zheng Xing 13-15, 15-6, 15-13 in a closely contested final.
The victory earned Momota 200,000 yuan (about RM122,255) in prize money, reported the New Straits Times.
Momota had initially been scheduled to compete in one of the tournament's legs in July last year but withdrew after undergoing back surgery. His appearance in Wuhan fulfilled his earlier commitment to Lin Dan.
During the three-day competition, the former world No. 1 also defeated regular Lin Dan Cup participants Zhou Ze Qi, Liu Ze Qing and Chen Wenjie on his way to the title.
"Thank you, everyone, for your support — really feeling tired," Momota said on the tournament's official website.
His return to competition comes after a serious road accident in Malaysia on Jan 13, 2020, when a van transporting him to Kuala Lumpur International Airport crashed hours after he had won the Malaysia Masters.
The accident left him with severe fractures around his eye sockets, resulting in double vision and disrupting a career that had seen him dominate men's singles badminton.
Before the incident, Momota had won 14 of his 16 Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour titles and set a men's singles record of 11 international tournament victories in a calendar year in 2019. South Korea's An Se Young matched that achievement last year.
Momota announced his retirement from international competition at the age of 30, citing the lasting impact of his injuries.
His latest triumph has fuelled speculation about a possible return to the BWF World Tour. However, he has not indicated any intention to resume a full-time professional career and has yet to enter any BWF-sanctioned tournaments.
It also remains unclear whether he would consider competing under the proposed 15-point scoring system.