Taipei: Malaysia’s World No. 6 men’s doubles pair, Ong Yew Sin/Teo Ee Yi, faced a challenging three-setter in the first round of the Taipei Open on Tuesday. However, they finally emerged victorious against the host pair, World No. 49 Chiu Hsiang Chieh/Yang Ming-tse, 15-21, 21-12, 21-15 to secure their spot in the second round.
Highlights of Ong Yew Sin/Teo Ee Yi vs. Chiu Hsiang Chieh/Yang Ming-tse in the 2023 Taipei Open first round:
Ong/Teo will face another Malaysian pair, Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub Azriyn/Tan Wee Kiong in the next round. Azriyn/Tan narrowly defeated South Korea’s Kim Young Hyuk/Wang Chan 21-17, 18-21, 23-21 in their first-round match.
Another Malaysian pair – Man Wei Chong/Tee Kai Wun also cruised into the second round after overcoming Canadian pair – Lam Wai Lok/Kern Pong Lap Kan 21-12, 21-11. Their next opponents will be the winners between Cheng Kai Wen/Liao Chao Pang of Taiwan or Christian Bernardo/Alvin Morada of the Philippines.
Unfortunately, the other two Malaysian men’s doubles pairs were eliminated in the first round. Boon Xin Yuan/Wong Tien Ci lost to South Korea’s Jin Yong/Na Sung Seung 17-21, 23-21, 15-21 while Goh V Shem/Lim Khim Wah also suffered a 17-21, 14-21 defeat to local pair – Chen Zhi Ray/Lu Chen.
In the men’s singles first qualifying match, Malaysia’s Aidil Sholeh triumphed over India’s Subhankar Dey in a thrilling encounter, winning 21-17, 18-21, 21-15 before he continued his success by defeating Thailand’s Korakrit Laotrakul 16-21, 22-20, 21-13 to advance to the main draw. His next challenge will be against Japan’s 4th-seeded player, Kenta Nishimoto, in the first round of the main draw.
Four other Malaysian men’s singles players, Leong Jun Hao, Cheam June Wei, Soong Joo Ven, and Yeoh Seng Zoe, will be competing in the first round of the tournament on Wednesday.
In the mixed doubles qualifying round, Malaysia’s Wong Tien Ci/Lim Chiew Sien displayed an impressive performance, defeating New Zealand’s Jonathan Curtin/Anona Pak with a dominant score of 21-11, 21-11. Their victory earned them a first-round matchup against the 5th-seeded pair Ye Hong Wei/Lee Chia Hsin from Chinese Taipei on Wednesday.
