Aaron-Wooi Yik urged to focus on process, not title defence

FootballSports
27 Mar 2026 • 3:23 PM MYT
The Sun Daily
The Sun Daily

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National coach Herry Iman Pierngadi advises the world No. 2 pair to take it one match at a time ahead of the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo.

NATIONAL men’s doubles head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi has advised Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik to avoid the pressure of defending their Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) title.

He wants the world No. 2 pair to adopt a cautious, match-by-match approach starting from their opening round in Ningbo, China, early next month.

“Defending the championship is certainly tough,” said Herry after a training session at the Badminton Academy of Malaysia. He hopes the former world champions will “focus on one game at a time and don’t think about the final”.

The second seeds begin their campaign against Taiwan’s Chiu Hsiang Chieh and Wang Chi Lin. Herry emphasised that their first-round opponents “are not an easy pair to beat”.

He believes it is better for the pair to “focus from one match to the next” rather than burden themselves with the expectation of a title defence.

To aid their preparation, Herry will utilise video analysis to help the pair reduce errors. He finds this visual learning approach more effective than verbal instructions alone.

“Usually, before a tournament, we evaluate players through video recordings of their previous actions,” he explained. Herry noted that while players listen with their ears during talks, their eyes also engage when watching video.