KUALA LUMPUR: National junior pair Loh Zhi Heng–Noraqilah Maisarah Ramdan won their maiden international mixed doubles crown at the Vietnam International Series (IS) in Bac Giang today.
World No. 133 Zhi Heng–Noraqilah, playing in their first international senior final, defeated Thailand’s world No. 159 Surasit Ariyabaraneekul–Atitaya Povanon, 21-13, 14-21, 21-16 in a 45-minute final.
The victory also made up for their missing the World Junior mixed doubles final, where top-seeded Zhi Heng–Noraqilah fell in the last four to Taiwan pair Hung Bing Fu–Chou Yun An, and settling for the bronze medal.
National junior mixed doubles coach Hazwan Jamaluddin was pleased with the pair’s win but felt that they have to keep working hard to improve their performance.
“They have started to show improvement in their game… their focus and confidence also look much better than before,” said Hazwan.
“But they still need to keep working hard as there are many aspects in their game that need to be worked on.”
It will possibly be their only title as a pair as national mixed doubles head coach Nova Widianto has new plans for the duo.
Noraqilah will partner senior Loo Bing Kun at the Korea Masters, which begins in Iksan on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Zhi Heng will combine with Nicole Tan, where the Indonesia International Challenge I in Yogyakarta on Nov 11–15 will be their first competition as a pair.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
