PETALING JAYA: A leaky court disrupted shuttler Justin Hoh’s (pic) rhythm in the Macau Open final but singles coach K. Yogendran is not using the incident as an excuse.
Justin was hoping to capture his first World Tour title in the men’s singles but found the going tough not just against his opponent Alwi Farhan from Indonesia but also due to the court conditions at the Macau East Asian Games Dome.
The 21-year-old Justin lost 15-21, 5-21 yesterday.
Water kept leaking which forced the players to keep asking the court attendants to mop the court in between rallies.
Yogendran said that Justin, who suffered a serious Achilles tendon injury in 2023, could not move the way he usually would due to the leaking.
“There was water leaking onto the court and this disrupted Justin today (yesterday),” said Yogendran.
“We all know that Justin had a serious injury and could not play for nearly a year.
“In his heart, he wanted to win but he was not brave to move the way he usually does.
“So, his movement was not smooth on court and that was one of the issues he faced.
“But this is not an excuse. We have to admit he lost to a better player.”
Despite the defeat, Yogendran was happy with Justin’s breakthrough outing after he made it into his first final in the World Tour.
Justin was also the first Malaysian in the men’s singles to reach a World Tour final this year.
“Overall, it has been a good week for Justin. He beat a few players whom he had struggled against previously to reach the final,” said Justin.
“This is a good process for him. After so long, he has got back his rhythm and game play. At least he knows now where he stands.
“Moving forward, we will keep working to improve his weaknesses and help him achieve more.”
Justin will be hoping to build on his positive showing after struggling to make an impression in the World Tour before this.
The youngster’s best result this year before this was reaching the quarter-finals in the Taiwan Open.
Justin will next have a break from tournaments before competing in the Hong Kong Open from Sept 9-14.
