PETALING JAYA: The early exit of Malaysia’s men’s doubles pairs at the German Open has raised fears of a repeat at next week’s All-England.
The biggest shock came when top seeds Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik crashed out in Mulheim after going down 15-21, 22-24 to world No. 89 pair Julien Maio-William Villeger of France in the second round on Thursday.
Wan Arif Junaidi-Yap Roy King also bowed out after losing 19-21, 21-8, 18-21 to Taiwan’s Lee Fang-chih-Lee Fang-jen.
Earlier, Choong Hon Jian-Mohd Haikal Nazri failed to cope with the pressure as they fell to world No. 2 pair Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang of China in the opening round.
However, 1982 All-England men’s doubles champion Datuk Razif Sidek (with Datuk Seri Jalani Sidek) believes there is no cause for panic despite Aaron-Wooi Yik’s surprise defeat, insisting the former world champions know how to bounce back ahead of the All-England in Birmingham next week.
“I don’t think it’s something to worry about. In the past Aaron-Wooi Yik have suffered upsets, but they responded well in the following tournaments with better results,” said Razif.
“Experienced pairs like them know what needs to be done after a defeat like this.
“Maybe they treated the German Open as a warm-up tournament, but personally I feel they could have pushed for at least the semi-finals or even the final even if they wanted to conserve energy.
“In any case, with the extra time after this early exit, I hope they will sit down with their coaches and reassess their strategy for Birmingham,” added Razif.
Last year, Malaysia had six men’s doubles pairs in the All-England and were seen as strong contenders to end the title drought since Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong last lifted the crown in 2007.
The optimism was further fuelled by the presence of experienced coach Herry Iman Pierngadi, who had just been appointed by the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) at the time.
However, it turned into a nightmare when five pairs were sent packing in the opening round, while professional duo Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani emerged as the only survivors before their campaign also ended in the second round.
Meanwhile, in the absence of Aaron-Wooi Yik in the German Open, the hope is on pros Sze Fei-Izzuddin to keep the flag flying in the quarter-finals where they will play Taiwan’s Chiu Hsiang-chieh-Wang Chi-lin.
Women’s singles shuttler Wong Ling Ching produced a commendable display after pulling off an upset over world No. 8 Pornpawee Chochuwong from Thailand to set up a meeting against Han Qianxi of China.
In the mixed doubles, Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie will face Singaporean-Indonesian pair Terry Hee-Gloria Emanuelle.
SECOND ROUND RESULTS
Malaysians only
Men’s doubles: Julien Maio-William Villeger (Fra) bt Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik 21-15, 24-22; Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani bt Teo Ee Yi-Ong Yew Sin 21-18, 21-14; Lee Fang-chih-Lee Fang-jen (Tpe) bt Wan Arif Junaidi-Yap Roy King 21-19, 8-21, 21-18.
Women’ singles: Wong Ling Ching bt Pornpawee Chochuwong (Tha) 21-14, 21-19.
Mixed doubles: Supak Jomkoh-Ornnicha Jonsathapornparn (Tha) bt Jimmy Wong-Lai Pei Jing 21-16, 22-20; Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie bt Filip Karlborg-Tilda Sjoo (Swe) 21-18, 21-11.
