PETALING JAYA: Men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik may have lost in the quarter-finals of the French Open at the Arena Porte de la Chapelle – but the good news is that the Paris Olympics venue looks to favour attacking pairs.
Aaron said the venue suits attacking pairs and this should suit him and Wooi Yik who are hard to beat when they are on the offensive.
The fact that Aaron also claimed courts at Porte de la Chapelle has strong draught means that most pairs are going to play an attacking game and the Malaysian pair can fancy their chances of doing well if they can adapt to the condition.
Pressure: Aaron Chia (back) and Soh Wooi Yik appear to be Malaysia’s best bets to win a medal.
“I think the courts are suitable for attack and for the pairs who don’t like to lift their shots (returns),” said Aaron.
“We have to prepared and the draught is quite strong in the arena. We must be aware of this situation.
“However, we are glad to have played three matches here and I hope to capitalise it when we come back for Paris 2024.”
Aaron-Wooi Yik, the world No. 5, will not be the only one hoping to cash in on the advantage of playing at the Porte de la Chapelle as world No. 1 Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty of India, world No. 2 Kang Ming-hyuk-Seo Seung-jae and world No. 3 Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang of China will also fancy their chances of a podium finish in Paris.
The one aspect Aaron-Wooi Yik needs to change fast is their habit of shifting between attacking and opting for a defensive approach for no obvious reason.
Wooi Yik also added they have plenty of work to do in the coming months to improve their physical condition and their attacking game.
“We have to plenty of work to do. We need to look at our physical condition and also need improve on our attacking game,” said Wooi Yik.
This year’s competition in the men’s doubles is seen as the most open affair as any pair in the top eight are capable of winning a medal in Paris.
Aaron-Wooi Yik appear to be Malaysia’s best bets to win a medal and if they can utilise their court conditions of the Porte de la Chapelle to their advantage, they could add another medal to the bronze they won at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
