Ready to go extra mile: Tee Kai Wun and Man Wei Chong in action against compatriots Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani in the last eight. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: Playing at home usually brings out the best from shuttlers Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun
And the duo proved it once again when they rose to the occasion in front of the passionate home fans by finally ending their losing run to professionals Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani to reach the men’s doubles semi-finals in the Malaysian Masters.
World No. 2 Sze Fei-Izzuddin were the favourites in the match but Wei Chong-Kai Wun were unfazed and fought hard to come out on top 19-21, 21-7, 21-16 in 45 minutes at the Axiata Arena in Bukit Jalil.
It was world No. 8 Wei Chong-Kai Wun’s first win over the independent duo after losing both their previous meetings at the 2022 German Open and 2024 China Open.
They now have another chance to score a first when they face Japan’s 2021 world champions Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi in the last four today.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun have never beaten Hoki-Kobayashi, losing both their previous encounters in the 2022 All-England and 2023 Asian Championships.
If they win, it will be their second final in the tournament, having finished as the runners-up in the home Masters in 2023 to South Korea’s Kang Min-hyuk-Seo Seung-jae. They also reached the semi-finals of the Malaysian Open in January.
On their fine form at home, Wei Chong said: “We’ve more motivation when we play at home as we know that many fans from other states travel far to come to support us during the tournament here in Kuala Lumpur.
“We have never beaten Sze Fei-Izzuddin before this, so this is a breakthrough for us and boosts our confidence.
‘‘Our strategy was to keep the rallies short, so physically we could still keep up in the third game.
“We also never gave up after losing the first game. Usually, we tend to slow down after going behind but this time we were mentally stronger and were solid in the second and third games.”
Wei Chong-Kai Wun are slowly rediscovering their form after suffering early round defeats in their last four tournaments.
“We are slowly getting our rhythm back. We hope to maintain our form until the end of this tournament,” said Kai Wun.
“We have never won against Hoki-Kobayashi, so we need to discuss with our coaches and come up with the best strategy.”
Meanwhile, Thailand Open champions and world No. 3 Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik kept alive hopes of an all-Malaysian final in the men’s doubles by coming out on top over Denmark’s Rasmus Kjaer-Frederik Sogaard 21-10, 21-19 in 36 minutes.
Standing in their way to the final will be world No. 1 and defending champions Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen of Denmark.
The Malaysians hold a 8-4 record, but the Danes should not be under-estimated.
