PETALING JAYA: The challenge on court is more mental fight than physical for national men’s doubles pair Man Wei Chong (pic)-Tee Kai Wun.
The world No. 20 pair failed to make the cut for the Paris Olympic Games in July and are not part of the team competing at the Thomas Cup in Chengdu from April 27-May 5.
It hasn’t been smooth sailing for the pair this year, with the Swiss Open quarter-finals last month being the furthest they reached out of seven tournaments.
Wei Chong admitted that the biggest challenge for them to overcome is their mental strength, which has caused inconsistencies in their performances.
“Mentally we are not strong enough and this needs to be adjusted and improved. It is not easy to have come this far but there is still a long way to go and we need to keep up the work,” he said at the NCT Junior Championships in Kota Kinabalu.
Wei Chong added that they will continue to elevate their performance in upcoming tournaments after not making it to Paris or Chengdu.
At the same time, the pair agree that the competition within the current national team is growing and welcome the pressure as added motivation to improve themselves.
“We are competing with each other and we are making progress as we compete,” said Wei Chong.
He also hopes the national Thomas Cup team in Chengdu will showcase their best performance and strive to get the title for the country.
Meanwhile, the duo gave the thumbs-up to the NCT Junior Championships which give schoolchildren the chance to compete in competitions at a young age.
They also did not forget to express their gratitude to their sponsor NCT Alliance Berhad for providing support to them, allowing the pair to be free from worries and channel their focus on playing and competing for the country.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun also took the time to play a friendly round of badminton with the children from Rumah Amal Kasih, in addition to sharing tips on the sport and words of encouragement.
