Feltham’s Rajiv Ouseph says harnessing the crowd’s support will be key to beating one of badminton’s top players at the All England Open on Wednesday.
The world number 22 will meet third seed Son Wan Ho in the opening round in Milton Keynes.
Ouseph says he is now fully fit, after niggling injuries forced him to miss the English National Championships in January, and wants to put everything in to his first-round match against Son.
“It’s a hard draw but being unseeded a lot of the matches I could have had would be tough,” he told West London Sport.
“It’s nice to test yourself against the best players. I’m just going to play without fear and focus on my game.
“Having not played the English Nationals [earlier this year], it’s a chance to play in front of a home crowd.
“Watching the qualifiers, it’s clearly been inspiring for some of the English players so hopefully they’ll help me raise my game.”
Ouseph is unbeaten in 2015 after winning the Swedish Masters at the beginning of the year and then picking up three victories in the European Mixed Team Championships.
But while he knows that record will be severely tested by world number four Son, the west Londoner has his eyes on other dates in the calendar.
He said: “The Olympic qualifiers in May and the Worlds [in Jakarta] are the big targets this year.
“The Worlds will be very tough for European players because the Asian crowds are always very vocal.”
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