KUALA LUMPUR: Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik's continuous struggle is certainly a cause for concern, especially with the Paris Olympics qualification set to go full swing over the next 11 months.
On Friday, Aaron-Wooi Yik failed to live up to their tag as the second seeds at the Malaysia Masters, losing 21-18, 21-19 to former world junior champions Daniel Marthin-Leo Rolly Carnando of Indonesia in the quarter-finals.
At the Sudirman Cup last week, Aaron-Wooi Yik were instrumental in helping Malaysia secure bronze, but that doesn't hide the fact that they had let the team down.
Then, hopes were high on them to deliver a point in the crucial fourth match, but they lost tamely 21-12, 21-11 to the scratch combination of Kim Won Ho-Na Sung Seung during the team's 3-1 semi-final defeat to South Korea.
Except for the runner-up finish at the India Open in January, Aaron-Wooi Yik have not really made a mark.
In their other seven starts, the world No. 2 failed to go beyond the last 16 on five occasions.
This week's quarter-final outing was only their second, apart from the Indonesia Masters.
With just one year left before the Paris Olympics, the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) is unlikely to make any changes as it cannot afford to reshuffle combinations.
But just how much longer can BAM doubles coaching director Rexy Mainaky stay patient if the situation does not improve in the coming months?
In their defeat against world No. 9 Leo-Daniel, whom they had beaten five out of six times before, Wooi Yik claimed they paid the price for not being patient enough.
"Our battles with them have always been close; it could go either way," said Wooi Yik in a brief post-match interview.
"It boils down to who is more composed. Tonight (Friday), they proved to be more prepared."
Wooi Yik disclosed that the pair will skip next week's Thailand Open and return for the Singapore Open on June 6-11.