Tang Jie blames semi-final loss to Thai pair on his unforced errors

The Star

18 hours ago

National mixed double shuttler Toh Ee Wei - Chen Tang Jie react during quarter-final match at the Malaysia Open 2025 at Axiata Arena Bukit Jalil. — FAIHAN GHANI/The Star
PETALING JAYA: Mixed doubles shuttler Chen Tang Jie did not shy away from taking responsibility for his defeat with Toh Ee Wei at the hands of Thailand's in-form pair Dechapol Puavaranukroh-Supissara Paewsampran in the Indonesian Open semi-finals.
Tang Jie-Ee Wei were hoping to make it into their first ever World Tour Super 1000 final but were denied by Singapore Open champions Dechapol-Supissara, losing 23-21, 15-21, 11-21 in 65 minutes at the Istora Senayan in Jakarta yesterday.
Tang Jie was disappointed with his performance and felt that his unforced errors during crucial moments in the match played a part in the world No. 4 pair's loss.
"We tried to find a way to attack but near the net, I made a lot of unnecessary errors," lamented Tang Jie in a post-match interview with the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
"That's the difference today (yesterday) as the Thai pair performed better than us but I'm responsible for the defeat too.
"I think in the first game, the difference was we did better in handling the shuttle in the mid court area.
"I changed my strategy in the second game as we were playing against the draught but it did not work."
Ee Wei said: "We did break through to win the first game but in the second game, when it was point to point, we never grabbed the chance."
Tang Jie-Ee Wei did well to fight back from 17-20 and 20-21 down to win the first game but could not maintain their performance in the second and deciding games.
Dechapol-Supissara are now fast becoming Tang Jie-Ee Wei's bogey pair after also beating them in the Japan Masters first round last November and Indonesian Masters quarter-finals in January.
The Malaysian duo's sole victory over the Thai pair came in the Indian Open second round in January.
Tang Jie-Ee Wei need to quickly find a way to overcome Dechapol-Supissara, who have become one of the best pairs in the world since combining only last year.
The Thais captured four titles before adding the Singapore Open to their collection and are now just one win away from their sixth crown.
Standing in their way to the title today will be either world No. 10 French duo Thom Gicquel-Delphine Delrue or China's world No. 11 Cheng Xing-Zhang Chi.
Meanwhile, it was still an encouraging showing for Tang Jie-Ee Wei in only their second individual competition since reuniting in April following a brief split due to a strained relationship.
The pair improved on their performance in the Singapore tourney where they suffered a second-round exit.
Tang Jie-Ee Wei will next take a break from tournaments before switching their focus to the back-to-back Japan Open (July 15-20) and China Open (July 22-27).