KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia has a strong history of producing world champions at the junior level, but that success has not always translated to the senior ranks.
Names like Zulfadli Zulkifli, who won the men’s singles title in 2011, and Goh Jin Wei, hailed as a national gem after claiming the title twice in 2015 and 2018, stand out.
However, both struggled to maintain that form at the senior level, with one of them no longer competing at the top tier.
Most recently, Malaysia’s men’s doubles pair, Aaron Tai and Khang Khai Xing, were crowned world junior champions, ending the country’s 13-year wait for a title in this category. The last title was won by Teo Ee Yi and Nelson Heg in 2011.
Aaron and Khai Xing are fully aware that they must reset their expectations now that they have been promoted to the senior squad, where the competition is much tougher, especially with Malaysia fielding several strong doubles pairs.
Within the national team alone, apart from world champions Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, they will face tough competition from pairs like Man Wei Chong and Tee Kai Wun, Haikal Nazri and Choong Hon Jian, Arif Junaidi and Yap Roy King, and other emerging pairs who have also stepped up to the senior ranks.
Outside the national setup, three more professional pairs are competing, including the rising duo of Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin Rumsani, as well as Teo Ee Yi and Ong Yew Sin, and Low Hang Yee and Ng Eng Cheong.
“We’ve already put behind us the fact that we are world junior champions, so we have to start from scratch again, step by step.
“If we want to reach the top like them (the senior players), we need to work three times harder than they do. The more, the better, five times or even ten times harder,” said Khai Xing.
Next year will be busy for the national squad, with the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championship (BAMTC) in February, the Sudirman Cup in April in Xiamen, China, and the SEA Games in Thailand in December.
Given the tournament formats, which will feature only one representative per category in both the BAMTC and the Sudirman Cup, the competition to secure a spot in the men’s doubles team is expected to be intense.
Aaron acknowledged this pressure, recognising the need to perform at their best to secure their places.
“We will keep pushing forward, and in training, we’ll focus more and work on improving all our weaknesses,” said Aaron.
The duo advanced to the second round of the Malaysia Super 100, currently taking place at Stadium Juara, Bukit Kiara, today by defeating Chaing Chien Wei-Wei Chun Wei of Chinese Taipei with a score of 18-21, 21-17, 21-19 after a 53-minute battle. — October 16, 2024