Rexy hopes players make up for his disappointment
News 3:37 PM
INDONESIAN Rexy Mainaky may be one of the successful badminton coaches in the world but, as a player, he has never won an individual gold medal at the SEA Games.
And the doubles chief coach of the Malaysian national team is hoping that his charges will be able to achieve it in Laos.
Malaysia have three men’s pairs – Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong, Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari-Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif and Chan Peng Soon-Lim Khim Wah. Except for Kien Keat, all the others are SEA Games rookies.
Rexy is looking forward to his charges ending a six-year wait for Malaysia to win the SEA Games men’s doubles gold medal.
The last Malaysian men’s doubles champions were Lee Wan Wah-Choong Tan Fook – in the 2003 Vietnam Games.
“I have not been lucky in the individual events of the SEA Games. But if the Malaysian players win, I can at least have a share in the limelight,” he said.
Rexy had the best chance to win gold in the 1997 Jakarta Games with Ricky Subagja but he had to concede a walkover because of a twisted ankle.
However, he had team gold medals to show for from the 1993 (Singapore), 1995 (Chiang Mai) and 1997 editions of the Games.
Rexy added that the race for the men’s doubles title in Laos was very open and hoped that his pairs would make up for their failure in the Super Series Masters Finals in Johor Baru last week.
Top seeds Kien Keat-Boon Heong failed to make the semi-finals while Fairuzizuan-Tazari went down tamely to Lee Yong-dae-Jung Jae-sung of South Korea in the last four.
“The defeat of Koo and Tan was understandable because they had gone through a very hectic schedule. They did well to reach the final in three of the four back-to-back tournaments,” said Rexy.
“They have everything going for them and I hope they will walk their talk here. There is also an opportunity for Zakry-Fairuzizuan if both can overcome their inconsistency.”
Malaysia’s main rivals in the individual events are Indonesians Markis Kido-Hendra Setiawan and Bona Septano-Mohd Ahsan.
The individual competitions start on Monday.
Posted by Lucas Liau
on 3:37 PM.
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