Malaysian pairs aware of threat posed by Yong-dae By RAJES PAUL PETALING JAYA: Malaysia have five national men’s doubles pairs challenging for the Thailand Open title. But the return of South Korean Lee Yong-dae after a three-month break could spoil the party for the Malaysians in the tournament, which begins today in Bangkok. In the absence of world number two Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong, the hope is on Choong Tan Fook-Lee Wan Wah, Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari-Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif, Tan Bin Shen-Ong Soon Hock, Chan Chong Ming-Hoon Thien How and Gan Teik Chai-Woon Lin Fui to keep up the good run by Malaysian pairs in international tournaments. The 24-year-old Fairuzizuan said that he would not underestimate the Korean threat, especially the challenge from third seeds Yong-dae-Jung Jae-sung. “Yong-dae is back after an injury. He has done well in the past. Back in action: Lee Yong-dae (left) is back after an injury and he can very well spoil the party for the five Malaysian men’s doubles pairs in the Thailand Open. “They will be the pair to beat in this tournament,” said Fairuzizuan in a telephone interview from Bangkok yesterday. The Korean pair did well to win their home Open and finished as the runners-up in the German Open. “But they have been out of action since the Swiss Open in March. “I have never won a match against a partnership involving Yong-dae,” said Fairuzizuan. But after going through a three-day motivation camp conducted by National Sports Council (NSC) psychologist Alexius Cheang in Malacca prior to the team’s departure for Bangkok, Fairuzizuan is more confident of a good showing. “It will be great if one of our pairs win the title. Both Zakry and I have never won an Open title and that will be a motivation for us to do it in Bangkok. It will not be easy but we will give it our best shot,” he said. Fairuzizuan-Zakry, who were runners-up in the Indonesian Open in May, will take on Taiwanese Tsai Chia-hsin-Hu Chung-shyan in the opening round. They are in the same quarter as veterans and second seeds Tan Fook-Wan Wah. World number eight Yong-dae-Jae-sung are in the other quarter of the half, which also has Bin Shen-Soon Hock. “We lost to Tan Fook-Wan Wah in the ABC (Asian Badminton Championships). “That was our first tournament together. It is also not easy to play against team-mates,” said Fairuzizuan. The other Korean pair, world number seven Hwang Ji-man-Lee Jae-jin, will be the ones to watch in the other half of the draw. Chong Ming-Thien How and Teik Chai-Woon Fui are in the same half and they are expected to clash in the second round. In the men’s singles, Malaysia will rely on seasoned campaigners – Wong Choong Hann, Mohd Roslin Hashim and Lee Tsuen Seng – for honours. The top two seeds are China’s Chen Jin and Chen Hong.
