KUALA LUMPUR: It's business as usual for former world champions Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik as they stayed on course
in the Petronas Malaysia Open.
World No. 4 Aaron-Wooi Yik smashed their way into the quarter-finals after making short work of national teammates Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani 21-15, 21-16 in the second round at the Axiata Arena today.
Together with independent duo Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi, who booked their last eight spot earlier, they are the only Malaysians left standing in the competition.
When asked if this piled more pressure on them to perform, Wooi Yik said: "Not really because Aaron and I have been in this situation before, and we know how to manage it.
"What's more important is for us to stay focused ahead of our tough quarter-final match."
Aaron-Wooi Yik will take on world champions Kang Min Hyuk-Seo Seung Jae of South Korea, while Yew Sin-Ee Yi face Japan's Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi.
Based on past results, both Malaysian pairs got the better of their respective opponents in their last meetings.
However, Aaron is not a person who relies on past showings.
"We have to prepare well although we've played them before.
"They won the World Tour Finals, but that was last year. It's now 2024, so we start again on equal terms," added Aaron.
While it was a good day in the office for the two Malaysian men's doubles pairs, the same can't be said for the rest of the Malaysian shuttlers, who fell one by one like bowling pins.
In the mixed doubles second round, all three pairs - Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai, Chan Peng Soon-Cheah Yee See and world No. 9 Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei - were sent packing, ultimately ending Malaysia's interest in the discipline.
In the women's singles, two-time former world junior champion Goh Jin Wei could not produce the same kind of performance that saw her win the first round on Wednesday, as she, too, bowed out of the competition following a 21-15, 24-22 defeat to Indonesia's Gregoria Mariska Tunjung.
SELECTED SECOND ROUND RESULTS:
Men's singles: Viktor Axelsen (Den) bt Lee Cheuk Yiu (Hkg) 21-17, 22-20, 21-17; Lu Guang Zu (Chn) bt Antony Sinisuka Ginting (Ina) 23-21, 25-23; Shi Yu Qi (Chn) bt Toma Junior Popov (Fra) 21-13, 21-5; Lin Chun Yi (Tai) bt Kunlavut Vitidsarn (Tha) 21-18, 21-16; Kodai Naraoka (Jpn) bt Brian Yang (Can) 22-20, 20-22, 21-16.
Men's doubles: Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi bt Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen (Den) 21-10, 11-21, 24-22; Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi (Jpn) bt Alexander Dunn-Adam Hall (Sco) 21-11, 21-13; Kang Min Hyuk-Seo Seung Jae (Kor) bt Lee Jhe Huei-Yang Po Hsuan (Tai) 21-13, 21-14; Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik bt Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani 21-15, 21-16; Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty (Ind) bt Lucas Corvee-Ronan Labar (Fra) 21-11, 21-18.
Women's singles: An Se Young (Kor) bt Yvonne Li (Ger) 21-13, 21-8; Yeo Jia Min (Sin) bt Han Yue (Chn) 16-21, 21-19, 22-20; Akane Yamaguchi (Jpn) bt Kirsty Gilmour (Sco) 21-9, 21-14; He Bing Jiao (Chn) bt Wang Zhi Yi (Chn) 16-21, 21-19, 21-11; Tai Tzu Ying (Tai) bt Busanan Ongbamrungphan (Tha) 21-7, 21-11; Gregoria Mariska Tunjung (Ina) bt Goh Jin Wei 21-15, 24-22; Chen Yu Fei (Chn) bt Ratchanok Intanon (Tha) 21-15, 21-18.
Women's doubles: Chen Qing Chen-Jia Yi Fan (Chn) bt Maiken Fruergaard-Sara Thygesen (Den) 21-13, 22-20; Liu Sheng Shu-Tan Ning (Chn) bt Li Yi Jing-Luo Xu Min (Chn) 21-19, 21-10; Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi (Jpn) bt Kim So Yeong-Kong Hee Yong (Kor) 21-16, 21-16; Tanish Crasto-Ashwini Ponnappa (Ind) bt Mayu Matsumoto-Wakana Nagahara (Jpn) 21-19, 13-21, 21-15;
Mixed doubles: Zheng Si Wei-Huang Ya Qiong (Chn) bt Rehan Naufal Kusharjanto-Lisa Ayu Kusumawati (Ina) 21-18, 21-17; Kim Won Ho-Jeong Na Eun (Kor) bt Kyohei Yamashita-Naru Shinoya (Jpn) 11-21, 21-17, 21-18; Dechapol Puavaranukroh-Sapsiree Taerattanachai (Tha) bt Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai 21-15, 21-12; Jiang Zhen Bang-Wei Ya Xin (Chn) bt Chan Peng Soon-Cheah Yee See 21-14, 21-14; Seo Seung Jae-Chae Yu Jung (Kor)
bt Dejan Ferdinansyah-Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja (Ina) 21-12, 21-16; Hiroki Midorikawa-Natsu Saito (Jpn) bt Chen Tang Jie-Toh Ee Wei 24-22, 21-14; Yuta Watanabe-Arisa Higashino (Jpn) bt Mathias Thyrri-Amelie Magalund (Den) 21-15, 21-11.
