Badminton

Aaron-Wooi Yik smash into world meet semis

KUALA LUMPUR: Men's doubles Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik delivered the best performance of the week as they kept the Malaysian flag flying high by checking into the semi-finals of the World Championships.

The world No 6 overcame South Korea's world No 11 Choi Solgyu-Seo Seung Jae 21-18, 21-16 in the quarter-finals at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium today.

The Olympic bronze medallists got their act right from the start as they took the crucial first game 21-18.

And they kept up the momentum in the second game to seal the win in 40 minutes.

The win means Aaron-Wooi Yik have kept up their impressive record against the Koreans, having now won their last four meetings in a row.

"We made quality shots in the first game to pressure the Koreans, and we were calm with our approach.

"We became more confident after winning the first game and kept the momentum going," said Wooi Yik.

Aaron-Wooi Yik's feat means they will return with at least a bronze medal, equalling Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi's achievement last year.

But the pair will be looking to make a breakthrough after consistently falling short in the semi-final stages in recent tournaments.

It is certainly going to be a challenge as they will meet either Japan's world No 2 Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi or India's Commonwealth Games champions S. Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty in the last four.

On paper, Aaron-Wooi Yik would certainly fancy their chances against Rankireddy-Chirag with an impressive 5-0 head-to-head record.

On the other hand, they have a woeful 2-5 record against second seeds Hoki-Kobayashi, having lost to the Japanese pair four times in a row.

Most Popular
Related Article
Says Stories