Malaysian Masters #2

 The star performers were Malaysian nens doubles pair Yap Roy King and Wan Arif Junaidi . They reached the semifinals but lost to the eventual winners. This is their best performance in the Super 500 tournament. They are the 5th best pair in Malaysia and ranked 47 in the world rankings.  Meanwhile Lee Zii Jia reached his second consecutive final at a Super 500 tournament, but lost to World No 1 Viktor Axelsen.   

Malaysian Masters #1

 The South East Asia swing moves to Malaysia with the Super 500 Malaysian Masters. Malaysian singles and doubles players are playing well here in the early rounds. In the doubles , I am keen to see how Yap Roy King and Wan Arif Junaidi perform. They did well to reach the quarterfinals at the Thailand Open last week. They are currently ranked no 47 in the world and were finalists at the Spain Masters in March this year.    

Jun Hao shuttler episode 5

 Leong Jun Hao is having a decent year. He has reached the last 16 of the Malaysian Masters super 500 tournament, beating the Chinese player Lei Lanxi. Last week at the Thailand Open, Jun Hao played a wonderful match against reigning world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn in the last 16 and lost in 3 tight sets.  Can he upset the world no 4 Li Shi Feng in the last 16? It is a tough task but Jun Hao has the home crowd behind him and I believe he can upset Li and enter his first super 500 quarterfinal of the season. He is currently world no 37 but has the potential to break into the world's top 32 this year. Jun Hao boleh!

   

Thailand Open 2024 #2

 Lee Zii Jia is the new Thailand Open men singles champion. He beat Angus Ng convincingly in straight sets. The Malaysian should hopefully get a top 8 seeding for the upcoming Paris Olympics following this achievement.   The next stop on the Southeast Asia Swing is the Malaysian Masters. Lets see if Lee can make another deep run in his home tournament. His game is more matured now, employing a good net game and patient rallying in addition to his deadly smashes. He needs to be more consistent now to challenge the Worlds top 5 players. He is a medal prospect for the upcoming Paris Olympics. A bronze medal is more realistic but he certainly has the potential to get a gold medal if he plays to his full potential.    

Thailand Open 2024 #1

 The Southeast Asia badminton swing is here. The first stop is the Thailand Open , a BWF super 500 tournament. The highlight has definitely been the progress of Lee Zii Jia and Leong Jun Hao, the 2 Malaysian singles players. Lee is through to the final and will play against Angus Ng from Hong Kong. Leong played the match of his life against reigning world champion Kunlavut Vitidsarn in he second round. Although he lost in 3 tight sets against Kunlavut, it was a terrific performance from him. The highly anticipated match between Lee Zii Jia and Angus Ng Ka Long will be held tomorrow. Lee is the favourite to win but Angus is a tricky player who has scored wins over Anders Antonsen and Kunlavut enroute to the final. I look forward to a good and keenly contested match.