PETALING JAYA: Mixed doubles shuttlers Hoo Pang Ron-Cheng Su Yin have a golden opportunity to reignite their season by ending their World Tour title drought in the German Open in the absence of several top pairs.
And coach Nova Widianto has urged his charges to grab the chance with both hands.
Pang Ron-Su Yin have had a tough start to the year, losing in the first round in both the Malaysian and Indian Opens before improving slightly by reaching the last eight in the Indonesian Masters.
The world No. 14 pair though can give themselves a much needed confidence boost by going all the way in the German tourney where they are seeded second behind only Denmark’s world No. 13 Jasper Toft-Amalie Magelund.
Pang Ron-Su Yin will open their campaign today against Algeria’s Koceila Mammeri-Tanina Mammeri and should have no problems making it into the second round.
The former’s best achievement so far was finishing runners-up to home favourites Feng Yanzhe-Huang Dongping in the China Masters last November.
“Many top pairs are not playing in Germany, so this is Pang Ron-Su Yin’s best chance to win their first World Tour title and I want them to make full use of this opportunity,” said Nova.
“Getting a title will boost their confidence as well as earn them valuable ranking points which will help them break into the top eight in the world faster and get a seeding in future competitions.
“The top pairs will be back in the next three European tournaments - the Orleans Masters, All-England and Swiss Open - so, it will be tougher for our pair.”
Nova also wants Pang Ron-Su Yin to get used to the expectations that comes with being one of the top pairs in the country.
Currently, the duo are Malaysia’s third highest ranked mixed doubles pair behind world No. 3 Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie and world No. 4 Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei.
“Pang Ron-Su Yin are now at the top level where pressure will always be there. Like it or not, they need to handle it well,” said Nova.
“When they reached the final in China, they showed great fighting spirit and enjoyed their game.
“Now, they are putting too much pressure on themselves. My advice for them is to always fight hard and they will have a chance to become champions.”
Meanwhile, in the qualifying round of the German Open, men’s doubles independent pair Chia Weijie-Lwi Shenghao suffered an early exit after going down 17-21, 14-21 to Taiwan’s Su Ching-heng-Wu Guan-xun.
