PETALING JAYA: China and Indonesia remain among the nations tipped to challenge Malaysia’s hopes of lifting the Thomas Cup in Horsens, Denmark, next month, despite unconvincing campaigns at the All-England.
That is the view of men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi, who believes the two powerhouses should not be underestimated, as they are capable of producing stronger performances in the world team event.
Herry noted that China, particularly in the men’s singles and men’s doubles, did not stand out at the All-England but stressed that it does not mean their players are weak.
According to Herry, the Thomas Cup’s team format makes it a very different challenge compared with regular international tournaments, and results at the All-England should not be taken as a true measure of a team’s strength.
“China and Indonesia could still be strong teams in the Thomas Cup. China did not really stand out at the All-England this time in the men’s events. But the Thomas Cup is different. Their singles players are spread across the squad and team competitions are not the same as individual tournaments,” said Herry.
World No. 1 Shi Yuqi endured an early exit at the All-England after crashing out in the first round to Lakshya Sen, with the Indian later eliminating another Chinese player, Li Shifeng, in the quarter-finals.
Two other Chinese players, Lu Guangzu and Weng Hongyang, also suffered first-round exits. Guangzu lost to Thailand’s Kunlavut Vitidsarn while Hongyang was beaten by Hong Kong’s Lee Cheuk Yiu.
Indonesia endured a disappointing outing in men’s doubles as well. Despite having five pairs in the draw, none advanced to the final. Their best result came from the young duo Raymond Indra-Nikolaus Joaquin, who reached the semi-finals before losing to South Korea’s Seo Seung-jae-Kim Won-ho.
Apart from those two nations, Herry warned that Malaysia must also keep a close eye on France as the European champions boast three strong men’s singles players.
They are Christo Popov (world No. 5), Alex Lanier (world No. 10) and Toma Junior Popov (world No. 17), all ranked higher than Malaysia’s top men’s singles player Leong Jun Hao, who is currently world No. 23.
“France must also be watched closely as they have three strong singles players,” he added.
The Malaysian camp have already begun preparations early for the Thomas Cup in their bid to end a 34-year title drought since last winning the tournament in 1992 in Kuala Lumpur.
