SEPANG – National men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik are now setting their sights on winning the world number one ranking and their inaugural Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Tour title.
After successfully ending their “jinx” of losing in the semi-finals in international competitions by claiming their historic World Championship title in Tokyo on Sunday, the world No. 5 pair are now motivated by their double mission to work harder.
Aaron, 25, also admitted that their success on the world stage had increased the heat for them to look at every tournament they participate in more seriously, as they will be “hunted” by their opponents due to their status as world champions.
“Actually, we were aiming for the World Tour title first, then the World Championship title. So we will still fight for the first World Tour title. This success makes us more motivated and confident for the next tournaments after receiving a lot of criticism for often losing in the semi-finals.
“It also gives us a fighting spirit because we also hope to become the world No. 1 one day. But at the same time, we need to work harder,” he told a press conference at Kuala Lumpur International Airport here after returning home from the success of winning the world title.
On Sunday, Aaron-Wooi Yik created history by becoming the first Malaysians to win the world title after a 45-year wait, when they beat experienced Indonesian pair Mohammad Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan 21-19, 21-14 in the final.
Aaron added that his shoulder injury, which forced them to withdraw from the ongoing Japan Open in Osaka, is not serious, and that he expects to recover with enough rest, in addition to getting married on September 16.
Meanwhile, Wooi Yik said that he and Aaron managed to achieve the success through perseverance and hard work despite often being criticised for not having a title at the international level, apart from the 2019 SEA Games gold medal since teaming up in 2018.
“At that time we didn't even know how to win the title, but we tried our best every time,” he said, adding that he was now more aggressive on the court to put pressure on opponents with the ability to act defensively and attack.
Commenting on his hopes for the BWF World Tour Finals from December 14 to 18 in Guangzhou, China after getting an automatic slot after their success in Tokyo, Wooi Yik said he wanted to focus on one tournament at a time.
“At the moment I think we should continue this good performance at the Danish Open and French Open (in October) first. After that, we have a month to retrain and focus, so I hope we can perform at the World Tour Finals. We just need to do what we need to do,” he said.
The 24-year-old said that he is looking forward to spending time with his family because he has not been home for a long time due to being involved with training and tournaments. – Bernama, September 1, 2022
