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KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysian men’s doubles pair Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi are out of the All England tournament after they lost to Indonesia’s Muhammad Shohibul Fikri-Bagas Maulana in the second round at Utilita Arena, Birmingham today.
The eighth-seeded national pair lost 21-18, 21-18 in the 44-minute match.
Yew Sin-Ee Yi got off to a good start in the opening set, but the 12th seeded Fikri-Maulana fought their way back to take the first set.
It was a similar story in the second set when Yew Sin-Ee Yi led the Indonesian pair up to the 18-point mark, but a minor right knee injury to Yew Sin midway through the set saw the pair lose momentum and later sent home by Fikri-Maulana.
This match was a repeat of last year’s edition when Yew Sin-Ee Yi’s hopes of advancing to the quarterfinals were dashed by Fikri-Maulana after they lost 24-22, 13-21, 21-17.
The Indonesian pair will now either face compatriots Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Rian Adrianto or Taiwanese pair Lee Jhe Huei-Yang Po Hsuan in the quarterfinal.
Meanwhile, mixed doubles pair Tan Kian Meng-Lai Pei Jing are also out of the tournament after losing 21-12, 11-21, 21-19 to Japanese pair Yuki Kaneko-Misaki Matsumoto in the second round.
This is the second time the 16th-ranked Japanese pair have denied the sixth-seeded Kian Meng-Pei Jing a spot in the quarterfinals as the Malaysians lost in the second round of the French Open last year.
Kaneko-Matsumoto will face top seeded Zheng Si Wei-Huang Ya Qiong from China in the quarterfinals tomorrow. – The Vibes, March 16, 2023