KUALA LUMPUR: They are the country’s second ranked men’s doubles pair but Goh V Shem sees no future in his partnership with Lim Khim Wah and wants a change.

The 21-year-old V Shem, who has been playing with Khim Wah for a year and a half, feels they are too inconsistent to be a success.

“There hasn’t been much improvement of late,” is his honest appraisal.

“We play well in one tournament and crash out in another. Our standard will stagnate if we stay together. I really don’t see us breaking into the top five.”

V Shem-Khim Wah are currently ranked 24th in the world while top duo Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong are No. 7. The other local pairs in the ranking are Hoon Thien How-Tan Wee Kiong (37), Mohd Lutfi Zaim Abdul Khalid-Vountus Indra Mawan (49), Teo Ee Yi-Nelson Heg Wei Keat (62), Chooi Kah Ming-Ow Yao Han (80), Mak Hee Chun-Teo Kok Siang (91), Shen Low Juan-Tan Yip Jiun (99) and Jagdish Singh-Yew Hong Kheng (124).

V are through: Goh V Shem (right) is disappointed he can’t hit it right with Lim Khim Wah. — Bernama

“We are struggling to even make the top 20. I can push myself further but I’m disappointed that I can’t hit it right with Khim Wah,” said V Shem.

The duo were an instant hit when they showed great fighting spirit in beating Indonesia’s Mohd Ahsan-Bona Septano at Istora Senayan in the SEA Games individual competition last year.

Some of their highlights this year include a win over Ahsan-Bona again en route to their first Super Series semi-finals in the India Open and a sensational victory over Taiwan’s Fang Chieh-min-Lee Sheng-mu at the Asian Badminton Championships.

V Shem said he hoped the coaches would seriously consider his request for a new partner.

“The matter has been preying on my mind and I really feel it will be for the better if Khim Wah and I are split. But I leave it to the coaches to decide.”

The BAM coaches will submit their proposals and plans for a major overhaul at the Coaching and Training Committee meeting, headed by Ng Chin Chai, on Sept 8.

If V Shem and Khim Wah are split, the next best thing would be to pair them with either Boon Heong or Kien Keat. There is already a proposal to have Boon Heong and Kien Keat paired with younger partners for the smaller tournaments while giving them a grace period of a year to compete at next year’s World Championships in China.

The right-handed V Shem would probably combine well with the left-handed Boon Heong while Khim Wah may click with Kien Keat. However, for this to happen, both Boon Heong and Kien Keat must be willing to part company. For the time being though, the duo are hoping that they will be given at least until the world meet to prove they are still a force to be reckoned with.

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