Red-hot Wei Chong-Kai Wun One Step Away From Malaysia Masters Glory
SPORTS
KUALA LUMPUR, May 24 (Bernama) -- National men's doubles pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun are just one win away from glory at the Malaysia Masters 2025 after a stunning 21-12, 21-14 semi-final victory over Japan's Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi at the Axiata Arena in Bukit Jalil here today.
The first game began cautiously, with both pairs level at 3-3 before found their rhythm and turned on the style to open up a seven-point lead at 15-8 before romping to a 21-12 win.
The fifth-seeded Malaysians had a shaky start to the second set, trailing 0-2 before they caught fire to storm to an 11-5 lead before a delicate net shot from Kai Wun sealed the deal, sending them into the final with a commanding 21-14 win in just 31 minutes.
This was their first-ever win over the 2021 world champions from Japan, having fallen short in their two previous encounters.
The world number eight Malaysians now have a chance to go one better than their 2023 runner-up finish when they went down fighting 15-21, 24-22, 19-21 to South Korea's Kang Min Hyuk-Seo Seung Jae.
In tomorrow's final, Wei Chong-Kai Wun will face either Malaysian fourth seeds Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik or the top-seeded Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen of Denmark.
Kai Wun said their aggressive tactical approach was key to denying Hoki-Kobayashi a place in the final.
He said that today's win over another world-class pair, following their 19-21, 21-7, 21-16 quarter-final triumph over world number two and compatriots Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Mohd Rumsani had given them a major confidence boost heading into the final.
Wei Chong, meanwhile, hopes that they can stay focused and carry their red-hot momentum into the title showdown.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Malaysia's Top Doubles Pairs Reach Indonesian Open Semis
BOTH national men's doubles pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun and national women's pair Pearly Tan-M Thinaah made it through to the semi-finals of the Indonesian Open today. Wei Chong-Kai Wun had no trouble beating Indian pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty 21-19, 21-16 at Istora Senayan, Jakarta while Pearly Tan-M Thinaah beat Japanese pair Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi 21-6, 21-18. Wei Chong shared that his victory came from fully focusing on the gameplay and strategy outlined by their coach. 'We don't think win or lose, we just do what we need to do. We just focus on game plan and strategy,' he said in an audio recording shared by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to the media today. Wei Chong-Kai Wun will play home pair Sabar Karyaman Gutama-Moh Reza Pahlevi Isfahani while Pearly Tan-M Thinaah will meet China's Li Yi Jing-Luo Xu Min in their respective semi-final matches tomorrow.
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Wei Chong-Kai Wun, Pearly-Thinaah advance to Indonesian Open semi finals
BOTH national men's doubles pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun and national women's pair Pearly Tan-M Thinaah made it through to the semi-finals of the Indonesian Open today. Wei Chong-Kai Wun had no trouble beating Indian pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty 21-19, 21-16 at Istora Senayan, Jakarta while Pearly Tan-M Thinaah beat Japanese pair Rin Iwanaga-Kie Nakanishi 21-6, 21-18. Wei Chong shared that his victory came from fully focusing on the gameplay and strategy outlined by their coach. 'We don't think win or lose, we just do what we need to do. We just focus on game plan and strategy,' he said in an audio recording shared by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) to the media today. Wei Chong-Kai Wun will play home pair Sabar Karyaman Gutama-Moh Reza Pahlevi Isfahani while Pearly Tan-M Thinaah will meet China's Li Yi Jing-Luo Xu Min in their respective semi-final matches tomorrow.
Free Malaysia Today
2 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin fail to make it an all-Malaysian semi-final in Jakarta
Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani would have met Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun in the semi-final if they had won. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA : Goh Sze Fei- Nur Izzuddin Rumsani failed to make it an all-Malaysian semi-final in the men's doubles after they fell to Indonesian pair Sabar Karwayan Gutama- Reza Pahlevi Isfahani in three games. The Malaysian world No 1 pair were beaten 21-19, 9-21, 21-19 in a pulsating 56-minute match that had the home crowd at the Istora Senayan, Jakarta on their feet cheering. With this defeat, hopes of an all-Malaysian semi-final between Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin and their compatriots Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun failed to materialise. Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin have met the world No 8 pair thrice so far with the Indonesian pair winning twice. Earlier, world No 7 pair Wei Chong-Kai Wun defeated India's Chiraq Shetty-Satwiksairaj Rankireddy in straight games to qualify for the semi-finals. Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin won the India Open championship title in January but failed to advance beyond the quarter-finals since then. They have won eight BWF titles so far with the Super 1000 series being elusive. The Indonesian Open is one such event offering a total cash prize of US$1.45 million. The winners of the doubles events stand to earn US$107,300 (RM452,289), and the runners-up US$50,750 (RM214,520). The semi-finalists take home US$20,300 (RM85,898). Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin will take home US$9,062 (RM38,296) as quarter-finalists.
