Huge blow: Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun suffered a shock 15-21, 19-21 defeat to homesters Kim Gi-jung-Kim Sa-rang in the opening round of the Korean Open.
PETALING JAYA: Men’s doubles shuttlers Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun just can’t shake off their inconsistent form.
The Malaysian world No. 16 suffered a shock 15-21, 19-21 defeat at the hands of veteran homesters Kim Gi-jung-Kim Sa-rang in the opening round of the Korean Open in Seoul yesterday.
It was a major disappointment for Wei Chong-Kai Wun, who were hoping to build on their runners-up finish in the Indonesian Open in Jakarta in June.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun did well to beat independent pair Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi in the second round of the Japan Open last week before going down to another Korean pair, world champions Kang Min-hyuk-Seo Seung-jae in the quarter-finals.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun have been dogged by inconsistency over the past two years since they started playing in top tier competitions and have still not managed to find a solution to their problem.
Meanwhile, independent pair Goh V Shem-Boon Yin Xuan had to dig deep before beating American pair Chen Zhi Yi-Presley Smith 17-21, 23-21, 21-11 to move into the second round.
V Shem-Yin Xuan will likely face Min-hyuk-Seung-jae next for a place in the quarter-finals.
Another independent duo Tan Wee Kiong-Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub are also through to the second round after beating Canada’s Kevin Lee-Ty Alexander 21-19, 21-11 and they will take on Indonesia’s Leo Rolly-Bagas Maulana next.
Newly crowned Japan Open winners Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani will open their campaign today against teammates Mohd Haikal Nazri-Choong Hon Jian.
In the women’s doubles, Teoh Mei Xing-Go Pei Kee defeated Canada’s Jacqueline Cheung-Catherine Choi 21-13, 21-16 to set up a meeting against home favourites and top seeds Baek Ha-na-Lee So-hee.
Independent pair Lai Pei Jing-Lim Chiew Sien, though, went down 15-21, 11-21 to Taiwan’s Sung Yu-hsuan-Wang Yu-qiao.
National No. 1 Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah, who received a first-round bye, will play Taiwan’s Nicole Gonzales-Lin Chih-chun in the second round tomorrow. (Malaysians Only)First round
Men’s doubles: Goh V Shem-Boon Yin Xuan bt Chen Zhi Yi-Presley Smith (US) 17-21, 23-21, 21-11; Tan Wee Kiong-Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub bt Kevin Lee-Ty Alexander (Can) 21-19, 21-11; Kim Gi-jung-Kim Sa-rang (Kor) bt Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun 21-15, 21-19.
Women’s doubles: Teoh Mei Xing-Go Pei Kee bt Jacqueline Cheung-Catherine Choi (Can) 21-13, 21-16; Sung Yu-hsuan-Wang Yu-qiao (Tpe) bt Lai Pei Jing-Lim Chiew Sien 21-15, 21-11.
RESULTS
