PETALING JAYA: Men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi felt Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik struggled under pressure against China’s Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang in the World Championships final in New Delhi on Sunday (Aug 23).
Aaron-Wooi Yik went down 17-21, 16-21 in 35 minutes at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium as Weikeng-Wang Chang claimed their first world title.
The victory also ended China’s eight-year wait for the men’s doubles crown since Li Junhui-Liu Yuchen won in Nanjing in 2018.
Herry said the Chinese pair’s aggressive play, especially at the front court, made things difficult for Aaron-Wooi Yik, who were unable to repeat the performance that saw them beat defending champions and world No. 1 Kim Won-ho-Seo Seung-jae 21-17, 21-18 in the semi-finals.
“It was a final and everyone wanted a good result, but Aaron-Wooi Yik could not repeat their semi-final performance. Their level dropped a little and they made too many mistakes,” said Herry.
“The Chinese pair were also more confident, especially at the front court, and that put Aaron-Wooi Yik under more pressure compared to the match against the Koreans.”
Despite missing out on a second world title, Herry was still pleased with Aaron-Wooi Yik’s run to the final.
He felt it was an encouraging result considering the pair had only a short time to train together before the world meet after being split two months earlier to play with new partners.
“Reaching the final was already a very good achievement because the competition in men’s doubles is very tight at the world level.
“We always see different pairs winning, so there is no one pair dominating.
“Four or five months ago, the Koreans were dominating, but not anymore. So for Aaron-Wooi Yik to reach the final was a very good result,” added Herry.
