Struggling: Chow Mei Kuan-Lee Meng Yean are ranked 15th in the world.
KUALA LUMPUR: The weakest link in the Malaysian badminton team is the women’s doubles department.
Shuttlers Chow Mei Kuan-Lee Meng Yean and Vivian Hoo-Yap Cheng Wen have struggled to beat any of the world’s top 10 pairs. They are currently ranked 15th and 23rd respectively.
Despite their lack of breakthroughs, national women’s doubles head coach Rosman Razak remains upbeat. He is confident that they will meet their targets at the World Championships from Aug 20-25 in Basel, Switzerland.
Mei Kuan-Meng Yean have a first-round bye and will play the winners between India’s Pooja Dandu-Sanjana Santosh and Taiwan’s Hsu Ya-ching-Hu Ling-fang in the second round.
If they clear the hurdle, they are likely to take on Japan’s world No. 2 Misaki Matsutomo-Ayaka Takahashi in the third round.
Barring any upset, Vivian-Cheng Wen may also face a top-10 pair in China’s world No. 7 Du Yue-Li Yinhui in the third round. They have a first-round bye and are likely to face Thailand’s Cha-
yanit Chaladchalam-Phataimas Muenwong in the second.
“Both pairs have a fair chance to get into the top eight. They have been playing the top 10 pairs regularly but without much luck, ” said Rosman.
“We play well but don’t have good finishing against the top pairs.”
Rosman pointed out that his two pairs have been consistent but it was time to raise their game.
“They need a win against the top pairs to overcome the psychological barrier. I believe they can beat the top pairs, they need to have the same belief, ” he said.
“Once there is a change in the mindset, the results will follow.
“I’m glad the players have not given up and work hard in training. Their perseverance will pay off eventually.”
Did you find this article insightful?
