Tze Yong pulls off stunning upset as Malaysia finish fifth
PETALING JAYA: Ng Tze Yong earned a timely boost in his bid for a podium finish in the boys’ singles event at the World Junior Championships which gets under way in Markham, Canada, today.
The 18-year-old pulled off a superb upset over Asian Junior champion Lakhsya Sen to help Malaysia beat India 3-1 to claim fifth spot in the mixed team event which ended on Saturday.
Playing in the third match after the contest was tied at 1-1, Tze Yong was in his element to power past Lakhsya – who is also the Buenos Aires Youth Olympic Games (YOG) silver medallist – 21-18, 21-14.
YOG girls’ singles champion Goh Jin Wei combined with Pearly Tan Koong Le to seal the victory for Malaysia, edging Tanisha Crasto-Gayathri Gopichand Pullela 21-11, 21-15.
Earlier, Chia Wei Jie-Chua Yue Chern were beaten 19-21, 21-15, 18-21 by Krishna Prasad Garaga-Dhruv Kapila in the opening boys’ doubles clash but teammate Eoon Qi Xuan swiftly made up for their shortcomings by beating Purva Barve 17-21, 21-14, 21-16.
While the playoff was nothing too significant, it meant the world for Tze Yong to have secured a morale-boosting win over the more
illustrious Lakhsya.
He intends to follow in the footsteps of Lee Zii Jia and Leong Jun Hao, who claimed bronze and silver in the same meet in 2016 and 2017 respectively.
“This is my biggest win,” said Tze Yong. “And from this win, I gained much confidence to fight for my goal in the individual event – that is to enter the semi-finals and win a medal.
“My seniors – (Lee) Zii Jia and (Leong) Jun Hao – have both done it and I’m inspired to keep the record going.”
But Tze Yong said he does not want to put too much pressure on himself and prefers to take it one match at a time.
Tze Yong has a tricky path to deal with on his way to the last four.
He faces a tough opening hurdle against Saran Jamsri and if he prevails, may face a repeat of the Asian Junior Championships’ quarter-final in July against Indonesia’s Ikhsan Leonardo Imanuel Rumbay, the second seed, in the last 16.
“I would love a rematch with Ikhsan after losing to him earlier. Surely, I’ll be better prepared against him this time,” said Tze Yong.
“But before I think that far ahead, let’s not forget my first round is just as tough. The Thai boy is a great player too.”
The other Malaysians in the boys’ singles action are Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin, Ooi Jhy Dar, Yap Roy King and Wyman Goh.
Malaysia are also represented by Jin Wei and Qi Xuan in the girls’ singles; Chia Wei JieChoong Hong Jian, Chua Yue Chern-Lwi Sheng Hao and Jhy Dar-Roy King (boys’ doubles); Pearly-Toh Ee Wei (girls’ doubles); and Wei Jie-Ee Wei and Hong Jian-Pearly (mixed doubles).
The national team are pinning their hopes on Jin Wei, the 2015 champion, and Pearly-Ee Wei, the Asian Junior runners-up, to mount a strong challenge in their respective events.
Jin Wei, also the bronze medallist last year, will be out to bid farewell to her junior career in style with a second world junior crown.