Only Fairuzizuan or Zakry will get to play in Thomas Cup Finals
News 9:26 AM
KUALA LUMPUR: Only Mohd Fairuzizuan Mohd Tazari or Mohd Zakry Abdul Latif will get to play in the Thomas Cup Finals, which will be held at Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil from May 9-16.
National chief coach Rexy Mainaky said that based on their performance in the recently-concluded Swiss Open in Basel, “there is only place for one of them”.
At the Swiss Open, the duo went down tamely 12-21,14-21 to Mathias Boe-Carsten Mogensen of Denmark in the opening round.
They put up a fight until the first 11 points in the opening game before running out of gas.
The duo had also crashed out in the first round of the Malaysian Open in January.
Rexy said the Swiss Open outing highlighted the duo’s lack of stamina.
“They did well in the opening game but Fairuzizuan and Zakry could not keep pace with the speed of their opponents after a while. They have become slower than the other fast-improving world class players,” said Rexy.
“I cannot field them as a pair in the Thomas Cup Finals for this reason.
“But I can pair one of them up with a younger player. They have the experience and they can complement a younger pair. This is an option for me and I will look into who can best fit into my plan.”
Only world number one Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong are confirmed of their spots for the Thomas Cup Finals. The other doubles pairs in the running are Ong Soon Hock-Hoon Thien How, Mak Hee Chun-Tan Wee Kiong and Lim Khim Wah-Chan Peng Soon.
Kien Keat-Boon Heong made up for their first-round exit in the All-England by reaching the final of the Swiss Open on Sunday.
But they failed to nail the crown for the third time after losing 18-21, 16-21 to South Koreans Ko Sung-hyun-Yoo Yeon-seong, who also disposed of their more illustrious compatriots Lee Yong-dae-Jung Jae-sung in the second round and All-England champions Lars Paaske-Jonas Rasmussen in the quarter-finals.
Said Rexy: “Koo-Tan had a 13-6 lead in the second game but they gave away easy points to allow the Koreans to eclipse them. We will work on improving on their concentration.
“It would have been great if they had won it. But, overall, they have given us a positive vibe going into the Thomas Cup Finals.
“The duo will be relied on heavily during the team event and we will get them ready for the big task ahead.”
Posted by Lucas Liau
on 9:26 AM.
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