KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 — The demanding schedule faced by 2022 world champions Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik is believed to have given an advantage to national men’s doubles pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun to overcome their seniors in the Malaysia Masters 2025 final here today, though credit must go for their hardwork.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun, entering as the fifth seeds, clinched their maiden title in the tournament by surprising the fourth seeds in the final at Axiata Arena, Bukit Jalil, with scores of 21-12, 15-21, 21-16, in a match that lasted 50 minutes. This victory redeemed their disappointment of being runners-up in the 2023 edition.
Kai Wun said they seized the opportunity after realizing that Aaron-Wooi Yik had reached two consecutive finals within a week, after a hard-fought victory at the Thailand Open 2025 last week, defeating William Kryger Boe-Christian Faust Kjaer of Denmark, 20-22, 21-17, 21-12 in the final.
“Perhaps their performance was slightly affected and their condition slowed down after playing almost every day lately. We played without pressure and didn’t think about champion or runners-up; the important thing was to prioritise our performance today,” he told reporters here today.
Wei Chong said the communication aspect on court with his partner has also improved after facing a poor run of form previously.
The 25-year-old also appreciated the role played by national men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi, who helped strengthen their mental resilience during difficult times.
After winning the Indonesia Masters 2025 by defeating home favourites Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Rian Ardianto, 21-11, 21-19 last January, the world’s eighth-ranked pair’s performance dipped, with early exits in four consecutive tournaments, before enjoying the taste of success today.
Kai Wun, delighted with their first home victory, especially over teammates Aaron-Wooi Yik, hopes to maintain the current momentum for the Singapore Open 2025 (May 27-June 1) followed by the Indonesia Open (June 3-8).
“Playing at home is very special to the point where fans didn’t know which side to support, but we are happy because first and second place belonged to Malaysian pairs,” he said.
Meanwhile, Aaron-Wooi Yik, who are Olympic Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 bronze medalists, admitted that their performance level has not yet reached 100 per cent after just winning the Thailand Open 2025 last week.
According to Aaron, they still made many unforced errors and will discuss with the coaching staff, especially Herry, who joined the national squad since last February, to improve any shortcomings.
“Our gameplay is more solid compared to before and more consistent. We have only been with coach Herry for a few months. So, we are still in the learning period and trying to adapt as fast as possible with him,” he said.
When asked whether local badminton fans can expect to see more ‘internal battles’ in upcoming tournaments, Wooi Yik is optimistic that this can be realized if the national men’s doubles pairs continue to maintain their momentum and excellent performance.
“Our men’s doubles is very strong. I hope we can maintain this and we have much more mission to go. It’s not end here yet. I think we have much much more mission like World Championships and Olympic Games,” he said.
Wei Chong-Kai Wun’s victory ended a 12-year wait for Malaysia after Goh V Shem-Lim Khim Wah won the Malaysia Masters in 2013.
In the 2023 edition, Wei Chong-Kai Wun finished as runners-up after losing to South Korean pair Kang Min Hyuk-Seo Seung Jae, 15-21, 24-22, 19-21. — Bernama
