PETALING JAYA: National men’s doubles coach Tan Bin Shen has narrowed it down to lacking confidence as probably the one significant factor that has been separating Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik from the world top four combinations.
The challenge for Aaron-Wooi Yik in tournaments, including the All-England which begins in Birmingham today, is to regain their self-belief and start playing courageously that has helped them with podium finishes in major events.
The top four pairs – Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty of India, Kang Min-hyuk-Seo Seung-jae of South Korea, Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang of China and Denmark’s Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen – have outperformed the Malaysian pair in recent times by turning the tide around in crucial situations.
Bin Shen believes the world No. 5 Aaron-Wooi Yik would have the winning edge if they start believing in their abilities and stick to their game plan when it works for them.
Min-hyuk-Seung-jae have beaten Aaron-Wooi Yik twice – both at the quarter-final stage of the Malaysian Open in January and the French Open on Friday – while Satwiksairaj-Chirag outplayed them in the semi-finals of the Indian Open in January.
All three were straight-game defeats while Weikeng-Wang Chang and Astrup-Rasmussen have also beaten Aaron-Wooi Yik in a few tournaments last year.
“I’m not saying that Aaron-Wooi Yik are totally down on self confidence. When things are working for them, things look fine but they need to be confident when the chips are down,” said Bin Shen.
“This is when they need to have the self-belief to bounce back. This is when they need to be brave and should not be shaky in playing their shots.
“We have discussed this situation during training but Aaron-Wooi Yik must act it out during matches.
“The current top four pairs have the ability to be consistent and handle the pressure and also force their opponents out of their comfort zones.
“At the All-England, Aaron-Wooi Yik must show that they too can change a tough moment into their favour by being brave.
“If they want to beat the top four and win titles, confidence is the key and they have to start at the All-England.”
Aaron-Wooi Yik have a comfortable opening match against compatriots Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani but should face their first big test against the newly crowned French Open champions Satwiksairaj-Chirag.
Satwiksairaj-Chirag, the world No. 1, won their first title beating Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei-Yang Po-hsuan 21-11, 21-17 at the Olympic test tournament in Paris on Sunday and will be pumped up to add the All-England crown to their collection.
The competition will also be important for Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun to perform more consistently in major Badminton World Federation (BWF) tour events and a victory against Akira Koga-Taichi Saito of Japan in the first round would be a good start.
Independent pair Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi are currently walking a tight rope and it is not going to be an easy task for them to make a strong start as they will be playing world No. 8 Liu Yuchen-Ou Xuanyi of China in the first round.
Young mixed doubles pair Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei also can take a cue of Bin Shen’s advice as they should start playing like a top eight pair if they wish to make the grade soon.
Tang Jie-Ee Wei, who have been stuck at No. 9 for some time, have an uphill task against world No. 6 Dechapol Puavaranukroh-Sapsiree Taerattanachai of Thailand in their first round but a confident approach could help their cause.
Independent pair Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie should escape their first round against Taiwan’s Chang Ko-chi-Li Chih-chen but they must brace themselves for difficult battle against French Open winners Feng Yan-zhe-Huang Dongping of China in the second round.
In the women’s doubles, Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah open their campaign against independent pair Vivian Hoo-Lim Chiew Sien and are expected to take on top seeds Chen Qingchen-Jia Yifan of China in the second round.
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