Chinese look too good, but do not write off the gritty Malaysians

IT’S probably the easiest prediction to make – China will beat Malaysia in the semi-finals of the Thomas Cup Finals in Chengdu today.

China, after all, boast all the top players in the world.

They have an impeccable singles line-up in Shi Yuqi, Li Shifeng, Weng Hongyang, Lu Guangzu – all ranked in the top 20 in the world.

And their doubles are mean machines led by world No. 1 Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang.

Above all, they have home advantage. Expect fans at the 20,000 capacity Hi-Tech Sports Centre Stadium to drown the atmosphere with their chants and cheers.

Malaysia, on the other hand, have a team that were not even given a ghost of a chance when they arrived in Chengdu.

And therein lies the catch. The Malaysians have defied all odds to reach the semis – their first in eight years. Most people had not expected them to beat the Japanese in the quarter-final either. But they did – and in style.

Against the Chinese, former All-England champ Lee Zii Jia, who also has a huge following in China, and former world champions Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik can probably hold their own in their respective events.

The others, however, are – on paper – easy meat for the Chinese giants. But anyone who writes off our players does so at their own peril.

This is David facing Goliath but David has been known to win. Remember 2002? That was when Malaysia toppled China at their own den in Guangzhou.

I was at the stadium. The sounds of cheering fans were deafening. It was also the semi-finals, and Malaysia had a young team against an overwhelming stronger home team.

Wong Choong Hann faced Xia Xuanze; debutant Mohd Hafiz Hashim was up against Bao Chunlai; Choong Tan Fook-Lee Wan Wah vs Zhang Wei-Chen Qiqiu; Chan Chong Ming-Chew Choon Eng vs Zhang Jun-Wang Wei; and Lee Tsuen Seng against Lin Dan.

But Hafiz delivered and Malaysia went on to beat China 3-1, dropping only one point through Choong Hann.

The stadium was silenced. In fact, some fans even walked away earlier when Chong Ming-Choon Eng were leading.

Of course, the scoring format used then was seven-point in best-of-five games which had opened up the race.

Malaysia eventually lost to Indonesia 2-3 in the final that year but they showed that nothing is impossible if they put their mind to it.

It is with this mentality that our Malaysian players have to face the home favourites today.

Zii Jia holds the key. He can upstage Yuqi if he keeps calm and minimises his fancy shots and mistakes.

The battle in the doubles is razor-thin. Aaron-Wooi Yik will have to pull off something spectacular to overcome their lanky and powerful opponents.

Leong Jun Hao has been in the team for many years but has always been overshadowed by his injuries. He has never even beaten a top Chinese player before.

In Chengdu, however, he has shown a different side of himself. He is cool and composed, almost not bothered by the intensity of the matches, and proved what he is made of. Hopefully, he will continue to believe in himself.

Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin Rumsani were touted as stars for the future when they reached the final of the Malaysian Masters in 2017 in Sibu, their first international tournament. However, they never really shot up after that.

Poor form and even a short separation had signalled an end of their careers but they have shown to be late-bloomers. They probably have the best chance to win a point against China if they keep their attacking game intact.

It will be hard if the tie goes to the deciding game as Cheam June Wei or Justin Hoh look like they will be no match for China’s third singles player – be it Weng Hongyang or Lu Guangzu.

But the Finals so far has been unpredictable. Who knows, China’s great wall may come crashing down once again if Zii Jia and Co have their way.