21 Jan Down but Not Out

National men’s doubles pair, Goh V Shem and Tan Wee Kiong aim to bounce back after their disappointing loss in the Perodua Malaysia Masters 2018 (PMM2018) presented by Daihatsu final to Indonesia’s Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rian Ardianto at the Axiata Arena, Kuala Lumpur Sports City earlier today.

After putting on a tremendous show and taking the first set 21-14, Goh and Tan could not capitalise on that advantage as they fell narrowly in the second set 22-24. Fajar and Rian stormed through to take the third set 21-13 and capture the PMM2018 gold.

“We made many unforced errors in the second set and that allowed our opponents a way back into the game. They also changed the complexion of the game and we were slow to react to that,” said Wee Kiong.

“Whatever it is, we will take this as a lesson and hope that this will not repeat in the future. After two tournaments so early in the year, things are still looking up for us,” he added.
National men’s doubles head coach, Cheah Soon Kit expressed his satisfaction on the pair’s form in the recent two tournaments.

“In my opinion, they played well in this tournament. We can see that they strive hard to get points and never give up. In fact, they are still trying to rediscover their form from the Rio Olympic,” said Soon Kit.

“I hope that they will be well-prepared as they shift their focus to the Thomas Cup qualification,” added the 50 year-old.

In the other final matches, World No. 1 Viktor Axelsen was pushed to the limit in his 21-13 21-23 21-18 win over Japan’s Kenta Nishimoto in the men’s singles category while the women’s singles World No. 1 Tai Tzu Ying fell to Thailand’s Ratchanok Intanon 16-21 21-14 22-24.

Danish international Christinna Pedersen and Kamilla Rytter Juhl captured the women’s doubles gold at the expense of Chen Qingchen and Jia Yifan while the mixed doubles winners’ medal went the way of Tang Chun Man and Tse Ying Suet.

Perodua Malaysia Masters 2018 Final Results (21 January 2018)
Men’s Singles: Viktor Axelsen (DEN) bt Kenta Nishimoto (JPN) 21-13 21-23 21-18
Women’s Singles: Ratchanok Intanon (THA) bt Tai Tzu Ying (TPE) 21-16 14-21 24-22
Men’s Doubles: Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Rian Ardianto (INA) bt Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong (MAS) 14-21 24-22 21-13
Women’s Doubles: Kamilla Rytter Juhl-Christinna Pedersen (DEN) bt Chen Qingchen-Jia Yifan (CHN) 22-20 21-18
Mixed Doubles: Tang Chun Man-Tse Ying Suet (HKG) bt Zheng Siwei-Huang Yaqiong (CHN) 19-21 22-20 21-18