Proud winners: Nur Izzuddin Rumsani (left) and Goh Sze Fei posing with their prizes on the podium. - AFP
PETALING JAYA: Mimicking the ways of masters of the game have proved to be the key to Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani’s meteoric rise.
Yesterday, men’s doubles shuttlers Sze Fei-Izzuddin showed that they were on track to emulate their idols Mohd Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan of Indonesia in their bid to become the world No. 1 pair by winning the Indian Open – their eighth career Open title.
In fact, the rise to the No. 1 spot could happen real quick if the world No. 2 Sze Fei-Izzuddin continue to show the fighting spirit and tactical ingenuity like Ahsan-Hendra.
The duo were in a class of their own yesterday when they fought brilliantly to pull off a sensational 21-15, 13-21, 21-16 victory over reigning Malaysian Open champions Seo Seung-jae-Kim Won-ho of South Korea in the final at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex in New Delhi yesterday.
On Saturday, they had stunned home favourites and 2022 Asian Games champions Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty of India 21-18, 21-14 in the semi-finals.
The pros are indeed on track to emulate Ahsan-Hendra, who have won all the major titles in the world.
Sze Fei-Izzuddin are currently trailing world No. 1 Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen of Denmark closely, and it all could change after the All-England in March.
Sze Fei-Izzuddin said they hoped to follow in the legendary Indonesian pair’s footsteps.
“Our idols are Ahsan and Hendra and we observe them a lot and try to play like them,” said Izzuddin.
“Their performances have been amazing and we hope that we can meet them again one day.”
The meeting though is unlikely to happen as Ahsan, 37 and Hendra, 40 are set to compete one last time together in the Indonesian Masters which starts tomorrow in Jakarta while Sze Fei-Izzuddin have decided to skip the tourney.
Sze Fei-Izzuddin, who added the Indian Open to their China Open, Japan Open and Arctic Open titles since last August, have proven that they have what it takes to go on and claim the All-England and world titles this year just like their idols.
The last Malaysian pair who became world No. 1 in the men’s doubles were Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong, who rose to the top ranking in 2016.
On their target to reach world No. 1, Izzuddin said: “Our performance is our No. 1 goal. If we can perform well, possibly our ranking will move up higher.”
In the Indian tourney, Sze Fei-Izzuddin turned around their form superbly after suffering a first round exit in the home Open last week.
Izzuddin had been unwell with a fever on home soil then, but they refused to use that as an excuse and managed to regain their best form quickly.
Sze Fei said: “We are happy that we could overcome the struggles over the last week. Credit goes to my partner, my coach (Teo Kok Siang) and our team. This win means a lot to all of us.
“The Koreans played faster in the second game and tried not to give us a lot of chances to attack. We had to increase our own speed and we are happy that we managed to come back and win.
“They didn’t make many unforced errors, so we had to be patient in every shot.”
PATH TO GLORY
First round: bt Tan Wee Kiong-Mohd Azriyn Ayub (Mas) 21-16, 21-16
Second round: bt Yap Roy King-Wan Arif Wan Junaidi (Mas) 25-23, 21-19.
Quarter-final: bt Lee Fang-chih-Lee Fang-jen (Tpe) 21-11, 21-17.
Semi-final: bt Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty (Ind) 21-18, 21-14.
Final: bt Seo Seung-jae-Kim Won-ho (Kor) 21-15, 13-21, 21-16.
Other titles
2022: Swiss Open 2023: US Open, Taiwan Masters, Abu Dhabi Masters 2024: China Open, Japan Open, Arctic Open
RESULTS FINALS
Men's singles: Viktor Axelsen (Den) bt Lee Cheuk Yiu (Hkg) 21-16, 21-8.
Men's doubles: Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani bt Seo Seung-jae-Kim Won-ho (Kor) 21-15, 13-21, 21-16.
Women's singles: An Se-young (Kor) bt Pornpawee Chochuwong (Tha) 21-12, 21-9.
Women's doubles: Arisa Igarashi-Ayako Sakuramoto (Jpn) bt Kim Hye-jeong-Kong Hee-yong (Kor) 21-15, 21-13.
Mixed doubles: Jiang Zhenbang-Wei Yaxin (Chn) bt Thom Gicquel-Delphine Delrue (Fra) 21-18, 21-17.
SEMI-FINALS
Men's singles: Viktor Axelsen (Den) bt Jonatan Christie (Ina) 17-21, 21-14, 21-15; Lee Cheuk Yiu (Hkg) bt Weng Hongyang (Chn) 13-21, 21-10, 21-16.
Men's doubles: Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani (Mas) bt Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty (Ind) 21-18, 21-14.
Women's singles: An Se-young (Kor) bt Gregoria Mariska (Ina) 21-19, 21-16.