PETALING JAYA: Malaysia may have a strong shot at returning home with at least a bronze medal from the Asian Championships, with hopes resting on mixed doubles pair Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie.
The husband and wife duo face Indonesia’s Jafar Hidayatullah-Felisha Pasaribu in the quarter-finals in Ningbo, China, today and on paper, they look good to advance.
Soon Huat-Shevon survived the biggest test yesterday when they scored a convincing 21-17, 21-14 win over their familiar foes Dechapol Puavaranukroh-Supissara Paewsampran of Thailand in the second round.
For Shevon, the victory was especially satisfying, given the challenging draw that saw them meeting the Thai pair for the third time this year.
“The shuttle was slightly slow today, so it came down to physical endurance and consistency in our shots,” said Shevon.
“But we were prepared, we already knew who we’d be facing.
“It was crucial for us to clear this round because they’ve always been tough opponents. To get past them feels like we’ve hit our target for the day.”
The tournament follows a format similar to the World Championships, where bronze medals are awarded to both losing semi-finalists.
However, the world No. 3 pair Soon Huat-Shevon, who clinched a bronze medal at the 2023 edition in Dubai, are not taking things lightly even though they hold the advantage against their world No. 25th opponents.
There could be double joy if top seeds and professionals Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani upstage China’s Chen Boyang-Liu Yi in a tough men’s doubles quarter-finals match today.
Sze Fei-Izzuddin, who are eyeing to go one step better than their runners-up finish last year, booked their spot in the last eight after a hard-fought 21-18, 22-20 win over Thailand’s Kittinupong Kedren-Dechapol Puavaranukroh in the second round.
Former world champions Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik also advanced to the quarter-finals after dispatching off India’s Hariharan Amsakarunan-Ruban Rethinasabapathi 21-15, 21-14 in just 37 minutes to set up last eight match against Indonesia’s Fajar Alfian-Rian Ardianto.
However, teammates Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun were eliminated 12-21, 21-16, 18-21 by Taiwan’s Liu Kuang-heng-Yang Po-han.
The others out of the tournament are Yap Roy King-Wan Arif Wan Junaidi (men’s doubles), Goh Jin Wei (women’s singles), Go Pei Kee-Teoh Mei Xing (women’s doubles) and Roy King-Valeree Siow (mixed doubles).
