PETALING JAYA: Taking on the reigning Olympic champions in their own backyard in a final will be daunting for anyone but Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun are unfazed by the huge task today.
Instead, they are ready to fight until the end against world No. 4 Lee Yang-Wang Chi-lin after setting up the mouthwatering showdown by ousting another home pair Su Ching-heng-Ye Hong-wei 21-13, 22-20 in the semi-final yesterday.
This will be their first final after winning the Syed Modi International in January.
The achievement was made even sweeter as Wei Chong and Kai Wun had been struggling with knee and ankle injuries respectively since the Hanoi SEA Games in May.
“Reaching the final means a lot to us as we didn’t think we could do it,” said Wei Chong, currently ranked 36th in the world with Kai Wun.
“We just hope that we can rediscover our form before our injuries.
“In the final tomorrow, we will fight hard as we have nothing to lose.”
This will be the first meeting between the two pairs.
While the Taiwanese will start as clear favourites, they have had their own struggles since creating history for their country by lifting the Olympic title in Tokyo last year.
This will be their first final since then and Lee Yang-Chi-lin are desperate to end their title drought.
They had dashed the hopes of another national pair Boon Xin Yuan-Wong Tien Ci with a 21-10, 21-14 win in the semi-final.
Meanwhile, mixed doubles pair Hoo Pang Ron-Toh Ee Wei also saw their gallant run in the tournament come to an end when they went down fighting 17-21, 21-17, 12-21 in 51 minutes to Hong Kong’s Reginald Lee-Ng Tsz Yau.
Pang Ron-Ee Wei can still hold their heads high after reaching their first semi-final since being paired up last month.
Ee Wei admitted that they still needed to work on their consistency.
In the men’s singles, independent player Soong Joo Ven found home favourite and world No. 4 Chou Tien-chen a tough nut to crack and lost 12-21, 12-21 in 42 minutes.
SEMI-FINAL RESULTS
(Malaysians unless stated)
Men’s singles: Chou Tien-chen (Tpe) bt Soong Joo Ven 21-12, 21-12; Kodai Naraoka (Jpn) bt Lin Chun-yi (Tpe) 21-19, 22-20.
Men’s doubles: Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun bt Su Ching-heng-Ye Hong-wei (Tpe) 21-13, 22-20; Lee Yang-Wang Chi-lin (Tpe) bt Boon Xin Yuan-Wong Tien Ci 21-10, 21-14.
Women’s singles: Tai Tzu-ying (Tpe) bt Wen Chi-hsu (Tpe) 21-14, 21-17; Saena Kawakami (Jpn) bt Natsuki Nidaira (Jpn) 21-13, 21-11.
Women’s doubles: Ng Tsz Yau-Tsang Hiu Yan (Hkg) bt Sung Shuo-yun-Yu Chien-hui (Tpe) 21-19, 21-15; Rui Hirokami-Yuna Kato (Jpn) bt Sayaka Hobara-Hinata Suzuki (Jpn) 21-7, 10-21, 21-15.
Mixed doubles: Reginald Lee-Ng Tsz Yau (Hkg) bt Hoo Pang Ron-Toh Ee Wei 17-21, 21-17, 12-21; Ruttanapak Oupthong-Chasinee Korepap (Tha) bt Chang Ko-chi-Lee Chih-chen (Tpe) 21-15, 23-21.