PETALING JAYA: Malaysia's top men's doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik underlined their strong intent to capture the All-England title by reaching the final again.
The world No. 2 Aaron-Wooi Yik put up a sparkling show to outplay Chen Boyang-Liu Yi of China 21-11, 21-19 in the 42-minute semi-final match in Birmingham on Saturday (March 7).
It would be their third final appearance, having reached the same stage on their debut in 2019 and again in 2024.
The Malaysians will face top seeds Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae of South Korea, who defeated Raymond Indra-Nikolaus Joaquin of Indonesia 21-19, 21-13 in another semi-final match that lasted for 48 minutes.
Aaron-Wooi Yik were brilliant in the opening game but the Chinese pair fought back in the second to take a 18-13 lead.
The Malaysians stepped up and a good tactical switch saw them turn the game around to seal victory.
Wooi Yik was pleased as punch.
"We were quite dominant in the first game and did well to control their rhythm. We hardly gave them the chance to lift too much," said Wooi Yik.
Their coach Herry Iman Pierngadi could be heard shouting, trying to calm the players down in the second game.
"Yes, the coaches were screaming to stay above the noise from the loud crowd. They were just trying to motivate us.
"We were down in the second but still focused on what we needed to do. We made some changes at a crucial time and it worked."
On getting another shot after two previous unsuccessful attempts in the final, Wooi Yik added: "To be honest, we want to focus point by point. That is what has brought us to this level and today. We will focus more on that than the result."
RESULTS
SEMI-FINALS
Men's singles: Lin Chun-yi (Tpe) bt Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Tha) 21-14, 18-21, 21-16; Lakshya Sen (Ind) bt Victor Lai (Can) 21-16, 18-21, 21-15.
Men's doubles: Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (Mas) bt Chen Boyang-Liu Yi (Chn) 21-11, 21-19; Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae (Kor) bt Raymond Indra-Nikolaus Joaquin (Ina) 21-19, 21-13.
Women's singles: An Se-young (Kor) bt Chen Yufei (Chn) 20-22, 21-9, 21-12; Wang Zhiyi (Chn) bt Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) 21-15, 21-19.
Women's doubles: Baek Ha-na-Lee So-hee (Kor) bt Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah (Mas) 21-17, 21-18; Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning (Chn) bt Jia Yifan-Zhang Shuxian (Chn) 18-21, 21-17, 22-20.
Mixed doubles: Thom Gicquel-Delphine Delrue (Fra) bt Guo Xinwa-Chen Fang-hui (Chn) 11-21, 21-18, 21-12; Ye Hong Wei-Nicole Chan (Tpe) bt Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet (Hkg) 16-21, 21-15, 21-13.
