THE hectic schedule of late was just too much for men’s doubles Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik.
On Friday, the newly-crowned Sea Games champions crashed out of the BWF World Tour Finals in Guangzhou despite winning their final group match against Taiwan's Lu Ching Yao-Yang Po Han.
Only the top two pairs from each group advanced to the semi-finals yesterday.
The Malaysians had lost in their opening two matches to Indonesia’s Muhammad Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan and Taiwan’s Lee Yang-Wang Chi Lin.
BA of Malaysia (BAM) coaching director Wong Choong Hann said: “Playing in too many tournaments definitely took a toll on Aaron-Wooi Yik.
“Yes, they are young and are supposed to recover faster but since the Denmark Open in October, they have had a hectic schedule which included the recent Philippines Sea Games.
“I think they went to Guangzhou with the right attitude and desire to win, but it was just too much to handle for them in terms of staying focused.
“Nonetheless, I am happy that they managed to secure a win, although they crashed out early.”
Mixed doubles Chan Peng Soon-Goh Liu Ying also failed to reach the last four, ending Malaysia's interest in the group stages.
Choong Hann added that the national elite players will have a short break before returning for the one-week training stint in Ehime, Japan at the end of the month.
According to the former World No 1, the stint is a good motivation for the players ahead of a tough 2020 season.
“It's something different for them. A change for once.
“It will be quiet, and we hope to encourage the players ahead of a tough season next year,” he added.