Thirty-somethings Ahsan and Hendra still going strong on happy hunting ground
INDONESIAN men’s doubles pair Mohammad Ahsan-Hendra Setiawan are looking to relive pleasant memories in the Malaysian Open.
The world No. 4 won their first-ever title together as a pair here in 2013 before they regained it two years later.
After having won their second All-England Open title by beating national shuttlers Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik 11-21, 21-14, 21-12 in the final in Birmingham last month, they are looking good to make it a third Malaysian Open title.
“We still remember being here in 2013, it was a wonderful memory to win our first title together and it was only the fifth tournament that me and Hendrawan partnered together,” said Ahsan.
“I hope we can win it again but we don’t want to look too far ahead yet and lose our focus as every match is going to be very tough for us.
“Also these days the competition is very different and there are tough pairs everywhere.
“We can lose even though our ranking is high.”
The two-time world champions looked in control as they easily beat Thai pair Bodin Isara-Maneepong Jongjit 21-16, 21-19 in the first round on Tuesday.
They play Malaysian independent pair Chooi Kah Ming-Low Juan Shen in the second round today.
Despite pushing over the age of 30 with Ahsan at 31 and Hendra at 34, the pair are still looking strong to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
With their younger compatriots Marcus Fernaldi Gideon-Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo sitting comfortably at the top of the world rankings and Fajar Alfian-Muhammad Rian Ardianto at seventh, Indonesia have a high chance of sending two representatives to the Olympics.
A country can send a maximum of two pairs to the Olympics only if both are ranked in the top eight.
“We still want to be able to play in the Olympics but we’re not being too ambitious yet because we don’t know what will happen in the future.
“Age is definitely a challenge but what is important for us is that we’re still hungry and young at heart. Our stamina and fitness are still good.”