Malaysia’s men’s doubles line-up will undergo another temporary reshuffle at the upcoming China Masters as the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) continues searching for the best partnerships.
For the Super 750 tournament in Shenzhen from Sept 1-6, BAM has entered several new combinations, including Aaron Chia partnering Man Wei Chong, while Aaron Tai teams up with Soh Wooi Yik.
However, men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi stressed that the changes are only temporary and were made mainly to help the players secure qualification for the tournament.
According to the Badminton World Federation (BWF) entry list released on July 21, keeping the previous combinations would have left both Aaron Chia-Man Wei Chong and Soh Wooi Yik-Man Wei Chong without enough ranking points to enter the main draw.
“We made these changes so they can compete in the China Masters. If Wei Chong and Wooi Yik had stayed together, their ranking points would not have been enough to qualify,” said Herry.
He added that BAM will continue testing different combinations in the remaining tournaments this year to determine the most effective partnerships.
Meanwhile, Tee Kai Wun will continue his partnership with Yap Roy King, while Wan Arif Wan Junaidi remains alongside Kang Khai Xing.
Independent pairs Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani and Tan Wee Kiong-Nur Azriyn Ayub are also included in the China Masters draw.
The latest reshuffle comes shortly after BAM ended Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik’s 10-year partnership, which saw the pair create history by becoming Malaysia’s first men’s doubles world champions.
The split was introduced ahead of the Japan Open as BAM looked to explore new combinations. Aaron was initially paired with Tee Kai Wun, while Soh Wooi Yik teamed up with Man Wei Chong, but only Soh and Wei Chong managed to qualify for the tournament.
BAM later paired Aaron Chia with Aaron Tai for the China Open, Taiwan Open and Korean Masters to ensure he remained active in competition while the coaching team continued evaluating potential partnerships.
With several tournaments remaining before the end of the season, Herry said the focus remains on finding the right balance and building the strongest possible men’s doubles combinations for future challenges.
