No. 2 men’s pair Yew SinEe Yi vow to repay BAM’s faith in them
Yew Sin-Ee Yi vow to repay Choong Hann’s faith in them
KUALA LUMPUR:
Trust us to deliver.
National men’s doubles shuttlers Ong Yew Sin-Teo Ee Yi are going all out to repay Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) coaching director Wong Choong Hann’s faith in them.
With the departure of national No. 1 pair Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong, Yew Sin-Ee Yi are now the No. 2 pair – behind Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik.
Moving up a notch comes with stiffer challenges but Choong Hann believes they have the abilities to succeed.
Yew Sin-Ee Yi were already on the shortlist for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic qualifiers before V ShemWee Kiong decided to move on and find their own way to Japan.
They were given the chance to vie for an Olympic spot, behind world No. 22 Aaron-Wooi Yik.
Yew Sin-Ee Yi are highly motivated by the faith Choong Hann has in them, especially after a series of early round-exits in their last six tournaments, albeit to higher-ranked opponents.
Furthermore, their ranking has also dropped 10 spots from 19th in September to 29th now.
“We’re thankful that he (Choong Hann) still believes in us because last year, though our performances were not very bad, they weren’t very good either,” said Ee Yi.
“And we’re very happy that Choong Hann is watching and helping us by giving us a clear direction.
“Right now, we’re working on more communication with our coaches and with Choong Hann to see what are the areas we can improve – like strength, conditioning and other things.
“So this year, with the Olympic qualifiers coming soon (in May), we hope to build from here and improve further to repay the faith Choong Hann has in us.”
Choong Hann added that even though the pair’s form had dipped towards the end of last year, he still sees the potential in the partnership.
“There was a slight slump in their results but I think they’ll improve soon.
“We’re monitoring their daily training closely, so we can tie up some loose ends.”
Yew Sin-Ee Yi will get their new year started by competing in the Thailand Masters in Bangkok next week (Jan 8-13).
The sixth seed will play a qualifier in the first round and may face home pair Tinn IsriyanetNipithphon Phuangphuapet.
If they get past both rounds, they’re likely to collide with V Shem-Wee Kiong – the tourney’s top seeds – in the quarter-finals.
“Our preparation for the new year has been good and our first target is to set up a quarter-final match with V Shem-Wee Kiong.”