KUALA LUMPUR: National shuttler Yap Roy King, who won the 2026 Korea Masters men's doubles title with Tee Kai Wun on Sunday, refuses to let success go to his head, insisting instead that it is just the start to them reaching greater heights.
Roy King described his success with Kai Wun in Asan, South Korea, as the catalyst to spur them on, saying their real challenge is to compete among the elite shuttlers in the Super 500, 750 and 1000 tournaments.
"As for me, I'm not so easily contented as my sights are set on the Super 500, 750 and 1000 tournaments. This was just a Super 300 tournament," he said in an audio clip shared by the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) today.
Roy King-Kai Wun took just 31 minutes to defeat compatriots Soh Wooi Yik-Man Wei Chong 21-13, 21-18 in the final yesterday.
Roy King admitted that their success in Asan was unexpected, given their opening-round exits in the two preceding tournaments, namely the China Open and Taiwan Open.
"Kind of unexpected, still feels unreal because before we came here (South Korea), we were playing badly.
"We lost in the first round of the first two tournaments. Then, now we are champions (in Korea Masters)… there's improvement, and we are quite happy also,” he said.
Asked about their partnership, Roy King said that constant communication and more time training together were factors that helped them understand each other’s playing style.
He also described the success on the third attempt as a good starting point for their budding partnership.
BAM previously adopted a new strategy by revamping their men's doubles department in a bid to find stronger combinations ahead of next year's qualifiers for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. - Bernama
