KUALA LUMPUR: Chan Yiwen hopes to defy the odds in the women's Asian Qualifier at the NSC Courts here, from April 18-21, to win a spot in the World Championships in Cairo from May 9-17.
Sixteen women players will compete in the Asian Qualifier, with only the winner qualifying for Cairo.
The 23-year-old will face a strong challenge from Hong Kong players to win the tournament.
World No. 74 Yiwen, who won the Hong Kong Challenge Cup in February, is seeded fourth and will face Akira Midorikawa of Japan in the first round.
She will likely take on fifth seed Ching Hei Fung of Hong Kong in the quarter-finals.
However, her main challenge will be against world No. 66 and top seed Cheng Nga Ching of Hong Kong in the semi-finals.
Yiwen lost her chance of playing in the World Championships last year after losing to compatriot Yasshmita Jadish Kumar in the qualifying final in Chicago.
"I am focused and prepared for the upcoming Asian Qualifier.
"With the support of home fans, I believe I will rise to the occasion and beat the Hong Kong players for the sole World Championships spot," said Yiwen.
The other Malaysians in the fray are K. Sehveetrraa, U. Thanusaa, Goh Zhi Xuan and Chen Yu Jie.
Thanusaa will face second seed Akanksha Salunkhe of India in the first round, while Zhi Xuan will take on top seed Nga Ching in the opening match.
The Malaysians in the men's qualifier are Addeen Idrakie, Syafiq Kamal, Darren Pragasam, Ong Sai Hung, Bryan Lim and Hafiz Zhafri.
Only the top 57 men and women-ranked players qualify automatically for the World Championships.
The other six spots in each category go to the five continental champions and the world junior champion.
Five Malaysians have automatically qualified for the World Championships based on their rankings.
World No. 16 Ng Eain Yow is the sole representative in the men's event, while world No. 13 S. Sivasangari, No. 28 Rachel Arnold, No. 34 Aifa Azman and No. 42 Aira Azman have qualified for the women's event.
