Malaysia's newly formed men's doubles partnership of Aaron Chia and Aaron Tai continued to impress after booking their place in the Taiwan Open semi-finals with a hard-fought comeback victory on Friday.
The pair defeated Taiwan's world No. 17 combination of Lee Jhe Huei and Yang Po Hsuan 15-21, 21-7, 21-18 in an entertaining quarter-final that lasted three games.
After losing the opening game, the Malaysians responded in dominant fashion. They controlled the second game from start to finish before holding their nerve in a closely contested decider to complete the comeback and secure their place in the last four.
The result is another encouraging sign for the new partnership, which is competing in only its second tournament together.
Aaron Chia, an Olympic bronze medallist, was paired with rising youngster Aaron Tai following recent changes to Malaysia's men's doubles line-up. Although the duo exited in the opening round of last week's China Open, they have shown significant improvement in Taipei with a series of confident performances.
Their latest victory is particularly impressive as it came against an experienced pair ranked inside the world's top 20, highlighting the potential of the new Malaysian combination despite their limited time together.
Awaiting them in the semi-finals are Taiwan's Chen Cheng Kuan and Liu Kuang Heng, who will have home support behind them as they look to stop the Malaysians' impressive run.
For Aaron Chia and Aaron Tai, reaching the semi-finals already marks an encouraging step forward. A victory in the next round would send the pair into their first final together and provide another positive sign that the partnership is developing in the right direction.
