PETALING JAYA: What began as a challenge from coach Nova Widianto ended in a fairytale finish for mixed doubles pair, Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei, who emerged as world champions in Paris.
Before their departure to Paris, Nova, a two-time world champion, had urged his charges to display the mentality of champions if they wanted to stand a chance of lifting the trophy.
It was seen as a tough assignment as Malaysia had never won a gold medal in the mixed doubles at the World Championships for the past four decades, and Tang Jie-Ee Wei themselves had also endured a series of defeats since being reunited in June after a brief split.
However they delivered in style when they defied the odds to stun world No. 2 Jiang Zhenbang-Wei Yaxin of China in a gripping final on Sunday (Aug 31), winning 21-15, 21-14.
"We just played with confidence because we had been performing well over the past few days," said Ee Wei in a post match interview with BWF.
"We didn’t want to overthink, but instead focused on every point and kept supporting each other.
"We knew the China pair are very strong and would put us under a lot of pressure, but we tried not to let that affect us."
Tang Jie-Ee Wei also expressed their gratitude to Nova and national doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky, who constantly reminded them to stay calm even in tense situations on court.
"Previously, we made some mistakes and became frustrated," said Ee Wei.
"This time, we made the change by refocusing on what we needed to do and sticking to our plan after committing errors.
"Our coach kept reminding us to take a deep breath, and that helped us keep a clear mind and play better on court."
It was a dream ending for Tang Jie-Ee Wei who, despite being one of the seeded pairs, were not widely expected to emerge as champions, as they proudly stood on the podium with the Jalur Gemilang raised and Negaraku echoing through the Adidas Arena in Paris.
It also ended their title drought, coming a year after they last stood as champions at the Korean Open on Sept 1 last year.
