Former great Razif lauds renewed fire in Sze Fei-Izzuddin in Australia

High hopes: Professional shuttlers Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani march on in the Australian Open.

PETALING JAYA: It might not have been a spectacular year for men’s doubles shuttlers Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani but they can still end it on a high.

Sze Fei-Izzuddin missed out on a spot in the World Tour Finals from Dec 17-21 in Hangzhou after an inconsistent year but they can still salvage some pride with a strong finish in the Australian Open.

Yesterday, the professionals showed they were on the right track to make it memorable when they pulled off a hard-fought 21-13, 20-22, 22-20 win over Goh V Shem and his South Korean partner Choi Sol-gyu at the Sydney Olympic Park yesterday.

The victory meant that Sze Fei-Izzuddin have reached back-to-back semi-finals for the first time this year after making it into the same stage in the Japan Masters in Kumamoto last week.

The world No. 4 pair will next face Indonesia’s rising duo Raymond Indra-Nikolaus Joaquin for a place in the final.

Former doubles great Datuk Razif Sidek has urged Sze Fei-Izzuddin to go on an capture the title.

“I hope Sze Fei-Izzuddin can reach the final and win the title. It’s too late for them to qualify for the Tour Finals but we still need to give them credit for making it into the semi-finals in these two tournaments,” said Razif.

“I can see the fire is back in them. If they had performed like this earlier in the year, they could have won a place in the Tour Finals.

“They need to learn from their mistakes this year and hopefully, 2026 will be a better year for them.”

Sze Fei-Izzuddin are the only Malaysians left in the men’s doubles in Australia after world No. 5 Wei Chong-Kai Wun suffered a shock 15-21, 21-19, 15-21 defeat at the hands of world No. 32 Raymond-Nikolaus.

Sze Fei-Izzuddin will be keen to avoid an upset in their bid to reach their third final this year after claiming the Indian Open in January and finishing runners’-up in the Japan Open in July.

Meanwhile, reigning mixed doubles world champions Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei also progressed into the semi-finals after beating Taiwan’s Ye Hong-wei-Nicole Chan 21-17, 21-15.

Tang Jie-Ee Wei will next take on Thailand’s 2021 world champion Sapsiree Taerattanachai and her new partner Pakkapon Teeraratsakul for a place in the final.