PETALING JAYA: The emergence of Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun could lighten the burden on national No. 1 men’s pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (pic).
This is the belief of national men’s doubles coach Tan Bin Shen.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun had exceeded expectations in the recent Malaysian Masters after finishing as runners-up at the Axiata Arena.
The world No. 26 pair had only missed out on the title by a whisker after going down fighting 15-21, 24-22, 19-21 to South Korea’s world No. 16 Kang Min-hyuk-Seo Seung-jae in a dramatic final on Sunday.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun’s improved performance in the home tournament was a pleasant surprise considering the duo’s struggles with injuries and poor form since they captured the Taiwan Open last July.
Bin Shen was pleased with his charges’ display and felt that if the pair could maintain their good form, it will take some of the pressure off top pair Aaron-Wooi Yik.
“This can be one of the factors that can lighten the burden of Aaron-Wooi Yik. Before this, we have been relying heavily on Aaron-Wooi Yik,” said Bin Shen.
“Having Wei Chong-Kai Wun fighting alongside them in tournaments can help them a lot mentally and also in training.”
Bin Shen also believed that Wei Chong-Kai Wun needed to learn the lessons from their agonising defeat.
“Overall, they did a good job. They have won lower-ranked titles in the past and have now finished runners-up in a Super 500 event,” said Bin Shen.
“This is a really good experience for them and they need to build on this.
“They beat top pairs like Denmark’s world No. 11 Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen (first round), Indonesia’s (three-time world champions) Mohammad Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan (quarter-finals) and world No. 9 Leo Rolly-Daniel Marthin in the semi-finals.
“In the final, they lost out on the crucial points and need to learn from this. We will work with them to reduce their mistakes.”
Meanwhile, Bin Shen has backed Aaron-Wooi Yik to bounce back after the pair lost 18-21, 19-21 to Leo-Daniel in the last eight.
“Aaron-Wooi Yik could have done better but they lost a very close match. I think they still need to improve in terms of fitness, strength and game plan.”
Both Aaron-Wooi Yik and Wei Chong-Kai Wun’s next assignment is the Singapore Open from June 6-11.
