Kuala Lumpur: While other Malaysian players were struggling, the mixed doubles No. 6 seeds Chan Peng Soon/Goh Liu Ying showed their regaining consistency and confidence as they beat Ben Lane/Jessica Pugh of England 21-13, 21-10 in the Indonesia Masters second round on Wednesday.
This would be the pair’s three consecutive quarter-finals appearances in three weeks, after winning the Thailand Masters two weeks ago, and lost to Yuta Watanabe/Arisa Higashino of Japan in the Malaysia Masters semis.
However, Chan Peng Soon believed they have yet to reach their best, and they still need to work harder in reaching their full potential.
“It’s great that we are able to stay consistent in three consecutive tournaments, but I think that’s not enough and we do not want to just feel satisfied at this moment,” said Chan.
“We’ll need to work harder in order to produce better results,” added Chan.
Chan/Goh will play England’s Marcus Ellis/Lauren Smith in the Indonesia Masters semi-finals.
Meanwhile, another Malaysian mixed doubles pair, Goh Soon Huat/Shevon Jemie Lai also stormed into the quarter-finals after eliminating England’s seventh seeds Chris Adcock/Gabrielle Adcock 21-19, 21-23, 21-7. Goh/Lai will take on World No. 1 Zheng Siwei/Huang Yaqiong of China on Friday.
In men’s singles, Lee Zii Jia of Malaysia also booked a place in the last eight after beating Sitthikom Thammasin from Thailand 21-13, 21-13 and will meet Danish player Anders Antonsen next.
“This is my second time beating Sitthikom in two weeks. This victory really boosted my confidence,” said Lee.
“I have to stay focused when playing Antonsen, but I do not want to put too much pressure on myself,” added Lee.
Malaysia’s challenge in the men’s doubles event has ended after Teo Ee Yi/Ong Yew Sin lost to world number two Li Junhui-Liu Yuchen of China 13-21, 18-21 on Thursday.
