PETALING JAYA: A semi-final exit in the Taiwan Open is not the end of the world but rather the beginning of a stronger comeback for mixed doubles pair Chen Tang Jie-Chan Wen Tse.
Despite going down 11-21, 15-21 to Indonesia’s fourth seeds Jafar Hidayatullah-Felisha Pasaribu yesterday, the duo’s run is seen as encouraging, considering they have only been playing together for just about a month.
The defeat also dashed Tang Jie’s hopes of repeating his success from 2023, when he won the title with his original partner Toh Ee Wei.
That victory was especially significant as it ended a 19-year title drought for Malaysia in the mixed doubles at the tournament. The last pair to win it before them was Koo Kien Keat-Chin Ee Hui in 2004.
However, mixed doubles coach Nova Widianto believes the duo met expectations by reaching the semi-finals, although he admitted there are still several areas that need fine-tuning.
“They’re not consistent yet, but still okay. Early on, I could see they were lacking in confidence,” said Nova.
With the pair set to skip the Thailand Open, which starts this Tuesday, Nova hopes the extra week will give them enough time to sharpen their game ahead of the Malaysia Masters from May 20 to 25.
Ironically, the draw for the Malaysia Masters is also scheduled to take place on Tuesday.
At last year’s edition, Chen Tang Jie and Ee Wei reached the semi-finals before their run was halted by fellow Malaysians Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie.
For now, Tang Jie and Ee Wei have been temporarily split, with Ee Wei currently partnering Loo Bing Kun.
However, the main pair is set to reunite at the Singapore Open starting May 27, while Wen Tse and Bing Kun may be assigned new partners by Nova.
RESULTS
Men’s singles: Loh Kean Yew (Sin) bt Wang Tzu-wei (Tpe) 21-18, 21-9; Chou Tien-chen (Tpe) bt Ayush Shetty (Ind) 21-18, 21-17.
Men’s doubles: Kang Min-hyuk-Ki Dong-ju (Kor) bt Hiroki Midorikawa-Kyohei Yamashita (Jpn) 21-19, 21-13; Chu Hsiang-chieh-Wang Chi-lin (Tpe) bt Takumi Nomura-Yuichi Shimogami 21-11, 21-12.
Women’s singles: Pitchamon Opatnipuh (Tha) bt Sim Yu-jin (Kor) 11-21, 21-15, 21-13; Tomoka Miyazaki (Jpn) bt Unnati Hooda (Ind) 21-19, 21-11.
Women’s doubles: Hsieh Pei-shan-Hung En-tzu (Tpe) bt Rui Hirokami-Sayaka Hobara (Jpn) 21-13, 21-15; Mizuki Otake-Miyu Takahashi (Jpn) bt Meilysa Puspitasari-Rachel Rose (Ina) 21-14, 21-19.
Mixed doubles: Dejan Ferdinansyah-Siti Fadia Ramadhanti (Ina) bt Yuichi Shimogami-Sayaka Hobara (Jpn) 21-19, 21-17; Jafar Hidayatullah-Felisha Pasaribu (Ina) bt Chen Tang Jie-Chan Wen-tse (Mas) 21-11, 21-15.
