PETALING JAYA: Mixed doubles shuttler Toh Ee Wei can’t wait to compete again in the World Tour along with Chen Tang Jie after more than a month away and hopes to hit the ground running.
Ee Wei injured her left hand after an accident in the gym that needed 16 stitches and was forced to miss the back-to-back Arctic and Denmark Opens last month.
The 24-year-old Ee Wei and Tang Jie, though, did get some match practice when they played in the inaugural Bdmntn-XL Invitational tournament in Jakarta which ended on Sunday.
Ee Wei proved that she was fully fit and also showed off some of her best skills when she was part of team BlitzersXL that captured the title.
Now, she is keen to get down to more serious business when she returns to the World Tour with Tang Jie in the Japan Masters which starts on Tuesday in Kumamoto.
Raring to go: Toh Ee Wei (front) and Chen Tang Jie will compete in the Japan Masters which starts on Tuesday in Kumamoto.
The pair will also compete in the China Masters from Nov 19-24 in Shenzhen.
“I’m quite excited to get back to competing in the World Tour after more than a month on the sidelines,” said Ee Wei, after a training session at the Academy Badminton Malaysia (ABM) in Bukit Kiara yesterday.
“I had some valuable match practice in Indonesia and gained good experience when I partnered a few top players.
“I will try my best to get back to my tournament and court feeling in the Japan Masters.”
Tang Jie-Ee Wei were in good form before the latter’s injury and captured their first title of the year in the Korean Open and reached the semi-final of the Hong Kong Open in September.
The duo want to get back to their best form again before the prestigious season ending World Tour Finals from Dec 11-15 in Hangzhou.
Tang Jie-Ee Wei, who are currently fourth in the Race to Hangzhou rankings, are already assured of a spot in the tourney as one of the top eight pairs.
“Yes, we want to get back our momentum and rhythm before the Tour Finals,” said Ee Wei.
“I cannot say that we can get back to our best form quickly as we had quite a long time away from tournaments but we will give our all.”
In the Japan tourney, world No. 9 Tang Jie-Ee Wei, who are seeded second behind Hong Kong’s world No. 8 Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet, have a tricky opening round match against Thailand’s 2021 world champion Dechapol Puavaranukroh and his new partner Supissara Paewsampran.
Ee Wei is wary of the threat posed by the new pairing.
“It will be tricky to play against a pair that have not partnered for long. Tang Jie and I started out as a new pairing too,” said Ee Wei.
“Both the Thais are top players and we will do our homework and discuss with our coach on how best to approach the match.”
Meanwhile, Malaysia will also be represented in the mixed doubles by Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie, Hoo Pang Ron-Cheng Su Yin and Wong Tien Ci-Lim Chiew Sien.
