Latest news with #MalaysianMasters
The Star
a day ago
- Sport
- The Star
Japan's former star Momota returns at Lin Dan Cup
Kento Momota of Japan featured in the tournament poster. PETALING JAYA: Former world No. 1 men singles shuttler Kento Momota is set to make a return to competitive badminton at the Lin Dan Cup in Xian, China from July 25-27. The 30-year-old great from Japan has been used as one of the main figures in the promotional poster produced by the hosts. The tournament, founded by badminton legend and two-time Olympic Games champion Lin Dan, offers a lucrative total prize purse of 850,000 yuan (approximately RM500,000). Besides Momota, several other foreign names are also slated to compete, including 2019 World Championship bronze medallist Kantaphon Wangcharoen, South Korea's Cho Geon-yeop, Ireland's Nhat Nguyen and Japan's Riki Takei. Malaysia will also be represented at the tournament by Tan Jia Jie and Cheam June Wei. Momota once captivated the badminton world with his remarkable dominance in 2019, winning 11 titles and suffering just six defeats out of 73 matches that year. He also won back-to-back world titles in 2018 (Nanjing) and 2019 (Basel). However, his career took a downturn after a car accident in 2020 following his Malaysian Masters victory, which severely affected his performance. The Japanese star eventually made the difficult decision to retire in April last year at the age of 29.
The Star
a day ago
- Sport
- The Star
A rare retreat
Stellar feat: Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun (in blue) denied Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik the Malaysian Masters title. PETALING JAYA: National men's doubles pairs Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun had a unique way of celebrating their recent title wins by treating the entire men's doubles squad to a short retreat in Genting Highlands. The initiative was a show of appreciation from the two top pairs, who acknowledged the contributions of their teammates in the men's doubles camp as an important part of their success. It was confirmed by national doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky, who said the retreat was aimed at strengthening team spirit, providing a chance for the players to relax, and to motivate each other ahead of upcoming tournaments. Last month proved to be a memorable one for the national badminton camp. Aaron-Wooi Yik, fresh from being crowned Asian champions, carried their momentum into the Thailand Open, where they captured the title. A week later in Kuala Lumpur, the pair reached the final of the Malaysian Masters, only to be denied by Wei Chong-Kai Wun in an all-Malaysian showdown, with the world No. 7 pair emerging victorious. Aaron-Wooi Yik continued their impressive form by lifting the Singapore Open crown the following week in the Lion City. Earlier in January, Wei Chong-Kai Wun had already made their mark with a title win at the Indonesian Masters at Istora Senayan. 'Aaron-Wooi Yik and Wei Chong-Kai Wun actually expressed their appreciation to the back-up men's doubles players for their support in helping them win their recent titles,' said Rexy. 'Instead of treating them to lunch or dinner, the men's doubles group decided to go for a relaxing retreat together for some team-building and to motivate one another.' However, Rexy did not join the retreat this time as he was unwell. The session was instead overseen and managed by head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi. The players are expected to return to a packed schedule starting next month, with the focus on the Japan Open from July 15–20, followed by the China Open from July 22–27.
The Star
2 days ago
- Sport
- The Star
Successful doubles players treat teammates to a retreat in Genting
Standing tall: Men's doubles champions Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun (in dark blue attire) and runners-up Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik posing with their coaches Herry and Miftakh after the final at the Malaysian Masters this year. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star PETALING JAYA: National men's doubles pairs Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun had a unique way of celebrating their recent title wins by treating the entire men's doubles squad to a short retreat in Genting Highlands. The initiative was a show of appreciation from the two top pairs, who acknowledged the contributions of their teammates in the men's doubles camp as an important part of their success. It was confirmed by national doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky, who said the retreat was aimed at strengthening team spirit, providing a chance for the players to relax, and motivating each other ahead of upcoming tournaments. Last month proved to be a memorable one for the national badminton camp. Aaron-Wooi Yik, fresh from being crowned Asian champions, carried their momentum into the Thailand Open, where they captured the title. A week later in Kuala Lumpur, the pair reached the final of the Malaysian Masters, only to be denied by Wei Chong-Kai Wun in an all-Malaysian showdown, with the world No. 7 pair emerging victorious. Aaron-Wooi Yik continued their impressive form by lifting the Singapore Open crown the following week in the Lion City. Earlier in January, Wei Chong-Kai Wun had already made their mark with a title win at the Indonesian Masters at Istora Senayan. "Aaron-Wooi Yik and Wei Chong-Kai Wun actually expressed their appreciation to the back-up men's doubles players for their support in helping them win their recent titles. "Instead of treating them to lunch or dinner, the men's doubles group decided to go for a relaxing retreat together for some team-building and to motivate one another," said Rexy when contacted. However, Rexy did not join the retreat this time as he was unwell. The session was instead overseen and managed by head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi. The players are expected to return to a packed schedule starting next month, with the focus on the Japan Open from July 15–20, followed by the China Open from July 22–27.
The Star
4 days ago
- Sport
- The Star
Hitting the right notes
National women's doubles shuttler Pearly Tan (left) helping her partner M. Thinaah who fell down while against China's Jia Yifan-Zhang Shuxian in the semi-final match of Malaysian Masters at Axiata Arena, Bukit Jalil on Saturday. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star PETALING JAYA: Women's doubles shuttlers Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah are slowly becoming a more complete pair. This is national doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky's assessment following the duo's recent fine form. Pearly-Thinaah rose to a career high No. 3 in the world after reaching their first ever World Tour Super 1000 final in the Indonesian Open in Jakarta earlier this month. Although the pair missed out on the title, they pushed China's world No. 1 Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning all the way before losing narrowly in three games. Pearly-Thinaah also captured their first title of the year in the Super 500 Thailand Open last month. Rexy believes the pair are becoming more all-rounded and hopes they can maintain their form. 'In doubles, we need a creator and a killer but you cannot train only for that. We also have to compete with opponents in midcourt and rear court. The rear court person should be able to play at the net, (and vice-versa), that makes it more enjoyable,' said Rexy in a recent interview with the Badminton World Federation (BWF). 'I can see they are getting there. It started early this year, they got better in the Indian Open, the Indonesian Masters, All-England, Thailand Open and Malaysian Masters. The big factor is they know themselves, their ability. 'A change happened when Pearly twisted her ankle at the All-England, and you could see Thinaah boosting her confidence. 'They have the feeling, they only need to get consistent in every tournament.' Pearly-Thinaah have been more consistent this year after previously going through ups and downs. The pair have reached at least the quarter-finals in all their competitions so far this year except in the Malaysian Open and Asian Championships where they suffered first-round exits. Pearly-Thinaah made it into the last four in the Indian Open and Malaysian Masters and finished runners-up in the Indonesian Masters. The pair's improvement is timely with the prestigious World Championships just two months away from Aug 25-31 in Paris. Before the world meet, Pearly-Thinaah will be looking to continue their good form in the Japan Open from July 15-20 and China Open from July 22-27.
The Star
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Star
Pearly-Thinaah on the way to becoming an all-rounded pair
PETALING JAYA: Women's doubles shuttlers Pearly Tan-M. Thinaah are slowly becoming a more complete pair. This is national doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky's assessment following the duo's recent fine form. Pearly-Thinaah rose to a career high No. 3 in the world after reaching their first ever World Tour Super 1000 final in the Indonesian Open in Jakarta earlier this month. Although the pair missed out on the title, they pushed China's world No. 1 Liu Shengshu-Tan Ning all the way before losing narrowly in three games. Pearly-Thinaah also captured their first title of the year in the Super 500 Thailand Open last month. Rexy believes the pair are becoming more all-rounded and hopes they can maintain their form. "In doubles, we need a creator and a killer but you cannot train only for that. We also have to compete with opponents in midcourt and rear court. The rear court person should be able to play at the net, (and vice-versa), that makes it more enjoyable," said Rexy in a recent interview with the Badminton World Federation (BWF). "I can see they are getting there. It started early this year, they got better in the Indian Open, the Indonesian Masters, All England, Thailand Open and Malaysian Masters. The big factor is they know themselves, their ability. "A change happened when Pearly twisted her ankle at the All England, and you could see Thinaah boosting her confidence. "They have the feeling, they only need to get consistent in every tournament." Pearly-Thinaah have been more consistent this year after previously going through ups and downs. The pair have reached at least the quarter-finals in all their competitions so far this year except in the Malaysian Open and Asian Championships where they suffered first-round exits. Pearly-Thinaah made it into the last four in the Indian Open and Malaysian Masters and finished runners-up in the Indonesian Masters. The pair's improvement is timely with the prestigious World Championships just two months away from Aug 25-31 in Paris. Before the world meet, Pearly-Thinaah will be looking to continue their good form in the Japan Open from July 15-20 and China Open from July 22-27.
