National mixed double shuttler Toh Ee Wei - Chen Tang Jie react during quarter-final match at the Malaysia Open 2025 at Axiata Arena Bukit Jalil. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
PETALING JAYA: Mixed doubles pair Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei will need to be on high alert when they take on Indonesia’s Jafar Hidayatullah-Felisha Pasaribu in the second round of the Japan Open today.
Jafar-Felisha, ranked No. 14 in the world, sent shockwaves in the opening round by ousting All-England champions Guo Xinwa-Cheng Fanghui 21-12, 21-17.
Their upset win serves as a timely reminder that they are more than capable of derailing Tang Jie-Ee Wei’s campaign in Tokyo.
Tang Jie and Ee Wei, however, can take heart from their previous meeting with the Indonesians, which saw the Malaysians emerge victorious in the second round of the Indonesian Masters in January.
However, Jafar-Felisha have a win over Tang Jie under their belt in the Taiwan Open semi-finals, although he was then paired up with junior shuttler Chan Wen Tse.
In the first round of the Japan Open, Tang Jie-Ee Wei got off to a solid start with a 21-15, 21-19 win over Canada’s Kevin Lee-Josephine Wu.
Also bidding for a place in the quarter-finals are husband-and-wife duo Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie, who will face Singapore’s Terry Hee and his new partner Jin Yu Jia.
Soon Huat-Shevon barely broke a sweat in their opener, cruising past Thailand’s Ruttanapak Oupthong-Jhenicha Sudjaipraparat 21-15, 21-10.
Meanwhile, Hoo Pang Ron-Cheng Su Yin will have their work cut out for them when they go up against defending champions and second seeds Jiang Zhenbang-Wei Yaxin of China.
Pang Ron-Su Yin are still trying to find their rhythm but showed resilience in their first-round win over the United States’ Presley Smith-Jennie Gai, coming through 21-19, 12-21, 21-16.
The Malaysians can draw confidence from their last meeting with Zhenbang-Yaxin at the China Masters last November, where they pulled off an upset to register their first win in three encounters.
The only Malaysian pair to bow out in the opening round were Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien, who went down 9-21, 8-21 to Japan’s Yuichi Shimogami-Sayaka Hobara.
