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New Straits Times
14-07-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Sze Fei-Izzuddin face friendly fire in Tokyo
KUALA LUMPUR: For men's doubles Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani, the biggest threat could come from inside, not outside. As the Japan Open begins today in Tokyo, compatriots Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik seek to take the title away from defending champions Sze Fei-Izzuddin. Ominously, world No. 2 Aaron-Wooi Yik appear fiery enough to stop world No.1 Sze Fei-Izzuddin. Aaron-Wooi Yik are clearly on a hot streak — winning the Asian Championships, Thailand and Singapore Opens At the other end, Sze Fei-Izzuddin have cooled down. They have not won on the World Tour since their India Open triumph in January. BAM's Aaron-Wooi Yik (89,870 points) are snapping at independent pair Sze Fei-Izzuddin (91,090) in the world rankings. Datuk Razif Sidek, who won the Japan Open in 1986 with Datuk Seri Jalani, believes an all-Malaysian final between the two pairs in the Super 750 event will provide a great image for Malaysian badminton. "The Japan Open has assembled a world class field and it's definitely going to be an honour to see our pairs justify their top two rankings and set up an all-Malaysia final. "Since all the top pairs are in Tokyo, it will be a quality win for either Sze Fei-Izzuddin or Aaron-Wooi Yik. "Sze Fei-Izzuddin will have a double goal of defending the title and also safeguarding their No. 1 ranking, and Aaron-Wooi Yik will stand to gain if they falter. "No matter what happens, it should be a success story for Malaysia as both pairs must battle it out to go all the way with several strong rivals from South Korea, China and Japan waiting to pounce. "The Japan Open will also be a testing ground before the World Championships in August, and it will be good to see our pairs securing the title to boost their chances at the major event," said Razif. Sze Fei-Izzuddin should sweep aside Canada's world No. 66 Kevin Lee-Ty Alexander Lindemann in the first round, but they are expected to face a tough obstacle against either Denmark's Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen or China's Chen Bo Yang-Liu Yi (world No. 11) in the semi-finals. Aaron-Wooi Yik, who meet compatriots Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi (world No. 30) in their opening round, have a tougher draw where they could face China's world No. 6 Liang Wei Keng-Wang Chang or 15th-ranked Indians Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty in the last eight. It gets tougher as they could face either South Korea's world No. 3 Kim Won Ho-Seo Seung Jae or Japan's world No. 16 Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi in the last four. Having won the 2022 world title at the Metropolitan Gymnasium in Tokyo, Aaron-Wooi Yik will be hoping for similar magic at the Japan Open this week.
New Straits Times
27-06-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Aaron-Wooi Yik treat teammates to Genting retreat
KUALA LUMPUR: Men's pairs Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun gave the entire BAM men's doubles squad a treat at Genting Highlands after their training session today. World No. 2 Aaron-Wooi Yik won the Thailand and Singapore Opens, and world No. 7 Wei Chong-Kai Wun bagged the Malaysia Masters this year. National doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky revealed that the top two national pairs wanted the Genting trip to be both relaxing and a fun-filled team building exercise. "The idea was mooted by Aaron-Wooi Yik and Wei Chong-Kai Wun who felt a simple lunch or dinner would not be enough to appreciate the contributions of their teammates (during training and sparring). So they decided to take them all to Genting Highlands for a retreat," said Rexy. "They also planned to have some team building activities to give each other motivation. "I am not going for the trip but coaches Herry (IP) and (Muhammad) Miftakh are with the players. They will return tomorrow (today). The next two weeks will be crucial as they prepare for the Japan Open on July 15-20 and China Open on July 22-27. Badminton Jan 17, 2025 @ 5:36am [UPDATED Aaron-Wooi Yik overpower tricky Thais Badminton Mar 17, 2025 @ 7:08am Aaron-Wooi Yik could miss Asian Championships due to injury Badminton Jun 1, 2025 @ 7:34am Aaron-Wooi Yik crowned Singapore Open champions [WATCH] Badminton Jan 9, 2025 @ 7:17am Aaron-Wooi Yik suffer shock defeat at Malaysia Open
New Straits Times
21-06-2025
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Can Herry keep Malaysian shuttlers in the hunt?
KUALA LUMPUR: There has been much success by his shuttlers, and for national men's doubles head coach Herry IP, the challenge is to keep it coming. The national pairs, led by world No. 2 Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, have even surpassed the Indonesian coach's expectations by winning four title since his arrival in February. Aaron-Wooi Yik won the Asian Championships, Thailand and Singapore Opens; Wei Chong-Kai Wun won the Malaysia Masters. But Herry is wary of the threat from the rivals when his shuttlers return to competition at the Japan (July 15-20) and China (July 22-27) Opens. "The second half of the season will be extremely challenging as it is tougher to maintain a high level performance than winning titles," said Herry. "The rivals would be doing their homework, studying the strengths and weaknesses of our pairs. "In a way, the five-week break from tournaments is a blessing in disguise. The players can improve their physical condition and also be tactically ready when they return to competition."
