PETALING JAYA: Tan Wee Kiong is not aiming too high with new partner Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub.
The independent men’s doubles shuttler, who captured silver in the 2016 Rio Olympics with Goh V Shem, has just combined with Azriyn after ending his partnership with Tan Kian Meng.
The 34-year-old Wee Kiong and Kian Meng had played together for nearly two years and their best result was in the 2021 Dutch Open where they finished runners-up.
“I decided to let Kian Meng focus on the mixed doubles (with Lai Pei Jing),” said Wee Kiong.
“Azriyn and I are being sponsored by the same company – Apacs Sports – and his partner Low Juan Shen has suffered a serious injury.
“So, we decided to form a temporary partnership. I’m not setting any targets for the both of us.
“We are just trying to perform well in tournaments.”
Wee Kiong-Azriyn are currently competing in their first tournament together - the Taiwan Open.
The pair fought hard to overcome South Korea’s Kim Young-hyuk-Wang Chan 21-17, 18-21, 23-21 in the first round at the Tian Mu Arena in Taipei on Tuesday.
“We have been training together for less than a month and are at the stage where we are still trying to understand each other’s game,” said Wee Kiong.
“We struggled a bit at the start of the match but got better after making some adjustments.”
Wee Kiong-Azriyn face a difficult task in the second round today against fellow independent pair and top seeds Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi.
Meanwhile, national pair and defending champions Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun should have little trouble beating Christian Bernardo-Alvin Morada of the Philippines in another second-round match.
