PETALING JAYA: It was a double blow for shuttlers Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani after the duo missed out on their second consecutive Japan Open title and are also set to lose their world No. 1 ranking.
Yesterday (July 19), Sze Fei-Izzuddin went down 16-21, 17-21 to South Korean hotshots Seo Seung-jae-Kim Won-ho in the final at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium.
Seung-jae-Won-ho, who are currently ranked No. 3 in the world, would also officially take over from Sze Fei-Izzuddin as the new world No. 1 pair when the rankings list updates tomorrow (July 21).
The independent pair were hoping to become the first Malaysians in the men's doubles to win the title in Japan more than once, but found the Koreans too hot to handle and lost out in a fast-paced match lasting just 38 minutes.
Sze Fei admitted that Seung-jae-Won-ho were the better pair on the day.
"The Koreans are very fast. We tried to catch up with them, but they were just too good," said Sze Fei, in a post-match interview with the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
"We had nothing to prove against them. We just wanted to play our best and enjoy the game."
It was Sze Fei-Izzuddin's second defeat to Seung-jae-Won-ho in three meetings after also coming up second best to the latter in the All-England second round in March.
The Malaysians' sole victory over the high-flying Koreans so far came in the Indian Open final in January.
Seung-jae-Won-ho have established themselves as the pair to beat this year as they added the Japan Open crown to their titles in the All-England, Malaysian Open, German Open and Indonesian Open.
The 27-year-old Seung-jae also gained sweet revenge over Sze Fei-Izzuddin after losing to the latter in the final in Japan last year with former partner Kang Min-hyuk.
Sze Fei-Izzuddin, though, can take heart that this is their best showing this year since their triumph at the Indian Open.
The pair had made it to their first final since the win in India after failing to reach the last four in all their other outings this year.
Sze Fei-Izzuddin are now looking to bounce back quickly in the China Open, which starts tomorrow in Changzhou.
The duo are hoping to defend their title in China and snatch back their No. 1 ranking from Seung-jae-Won-ho.
"We will prepare ourselves better next time and just focus on ourselves," said Izzuddin.
