Malaysia’s French Open champions Man Wei Chong and Tee Kai Wun must beat Japan’s Haruki Kawabe and Kenta Matsukawa on Friday to keep their Korea Open title hopes alive, after the world No. 9 pair survived a nervy second round at Jinnam Stadium in Yeosu, New Straits Times reported.
The third seeds booked their place in the Super 500 quarter-finals by defeating Taiwan’s world No. 32 Chen Zhi Ray and Lin Yu Chieh 24-22, 21-12 on Thursday. But the Japanese pair, ranked world No. 57, arrive in Yeosu with a demonstrated habit of beating higher-seeded opponents.
Kawabe-Matsukawa Have Already Beaten Higher Seeds This Season
The Japanese duo reached the semi-finals of the Korea Masters in August, a run that included upsets over China’s top seeds Hu Keyuan and Lin Xiang Yi and Japan’s sixth seeds Shuntaro Mezaki and Yuta Oku. Their campaign ended only when they lost a three-game semi-final to Wei Chong, who was then partnering Soh Wooi Yik, 18-21, 22-20, 21-18.
That history gives Friday’s match added texture: Kawabe and Matsukawa also defeated Wei Chong and Soh Wooi Yik in the opening round of the Taiwan Open earlier that same month, so both sides know what the other brings.
French Open Triumph Fuels the Malaysian Pair
Wei Chong has since reunited with Tee Kai Wun, and the partnership has found fresh momentum after winning the French Open last month. The Malaysians ended a 22-year wait for a national men’s doubles title at that tournament when they beat compatriots Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin 13-21, 21-15, 21-7 in the final. The victory was also their first Super 750 title and their sixth World Tour crown together.
Still, their path through Yeosu has not been smooth. Wei Chong and Tee Kai Wun needed three games to get past compatriots Low Hang Yee and Ng Eng Cheong 12-21, 21-8, 21-12 in the first round, and Chen Zhi Ray and Lin Yu Chieh pushed them hard in the opening game on Thursday before the Malaysians found their rhythm to close out the match in straight games.
Letshanaa Falls Again to an Se Young in Women’s Singles
Elsewhere in Yeosu, national women’s singles shuttler K. Letshanaa suffered another setback against South Korea’s world No. 1 An Se Young, losing 21-10, 21-12 in the second round. This marked Letshanaa’s fifth consecutive defeat at the hands of the reigning world champion, who had prevailed in all four of their earlier meetings. Two of those previous losses occurred this year, at the Asian Team Championships in Qingdao in February and the Asian Games women’s team competition in September.
For world No. 28 Letshanaa, the result extended a run without a quarter-final appearance, her last coming at the Malaysia Masters in May. An Se Young, meanwhile, is chasing her 11th title of the season on home soil after winning the Denmark Open and French Open crowns last month. A victory in Yeosu would make the South Korean the first player to win at least 11 international titles in consecutive seasons.
Friday’s Quarter-Final Tests Malaysian Momentum
Friday’s encounter will test whether Wei Chong and Tee Kai Wun can carry the momentum of their French Open triumph against opponents who have already shown they can trouble far higher-ranked pairs. The quarter-final is set for Friday at Jinnam Stadium in Yeosu, with a semi-final berth at the Super 500 event on the line.
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