KUALA LUMPUR: Tee Kai Wun’s European heroics have taken him and partner Man Wei Chong to the brink of qualifying for their maiden World Tour Finals (WTF), and in the process, have turned up the pressure on compatriots Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani.
Their fine run in Europe was, however, derailed when Kai Wun suffered a left calf injury in early October, forcing the world No. 5 pair to skip the Arctic and Denmark Opens.
Despite the setback, Kai Wun battled pain to reach the quarter-finals at the French Open and the semi-finals at the Hylo Open, keeping the pair within touching distance of the season finale in Hangzhou (Dec 17-21).
Now, the equation is simple.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun need to reach just the second round at both the Kumamoto Masters (Nov 11-15) and the Australia Open (Nov 18-23) to confirm their WTF slot.
Meanwhile, world No. 4 Sze Fei-Izzuddin, runners-up at last year’s Finals, face an almost impossible task.
With 72,770 points to their name compared to Wei Chong-Kai Wun’s 86,020 — they must win both upcoming tournaments and hope their teammates crash out early to stand any chance.
World No. 2 Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik (97,980 points) have already qualified, meaning only two Malaysian pairs can make the cut.
“They did well considering the pain Kai Wun has had to endure. I believe they can seal their Finals place in Kumamoto,” said national coach Herry IP.
“If not for the injury, they could have reached the Hylo Open final.”
Kai Wun required painkiller jabs to play in Saarbrucken but could not overcome the pain in the semi-final loss to Indonesia’s Sabar Karyaman-Moh Reza Isfahani, falling 21-15, 21-16.
On Sunday, Taiwan’s Chiu Hsiang Chieh-Wang Chi Lin went on to win their first Super 500 title, beating the Indonesians 21-19, 21-18, to climb to ninth in the standings, within striking distance of a late WTF berth.
The road ahead is no easier for Sze Fei-Izzuddin, who face a yough draw at the Kumamoto Masters.
They must overcome world No. 1 Kim Won Ho-Seo Seung Jae of South Korea, Japan’s No. 10 Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi, and possibly world No. 3 Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty of India — not to mention fellow Malaysians.
It’s shaping up to be a Herculean mission for Sze Fei-Izzuddin, who have failed to reach even a semi-final in their last seven World Tour events.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
