PETALING JAYA: Men’s doubles shuttlers Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik went down fighting to China’s world No. 1 Liang Weikeng-Wang Chang to finish second in their group.
Both pairs have qualified for the quarter-finals of the Paris Olympics and will know next who they will face after a fresh draw on Wednesday (July 31).
It was Aaron-Wooi Yik’s seventh defeat to the Chinese duo in nine meetings and the former will now face one of the winners from the other groups in the quarter-finals.
Despite the defeat, Aaron-Wooi Yik are staying positive as they looked forward to the last eight.
“We enjoyed the game and played without pressure,” Aaron told the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
“We treated this as a practice match for us as there are still matches for us to look forward to (in the competition after this).”
Wooi Yik said: “Physically, everything is good for us. We were against the world No. 1 and a top pair and the first three shots were crucial.
“In the first game, we lost some points in the crucial stages due to the first three shots. They were slightly better than us on this aspect and this is where we need to focus on in the next matches.”
Aaron-Wooi Yik won a bronze at the last Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2022.
Source Agencies
