THE sensational triumph of Malaysia’s men’s doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik at the Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) in China yesterday signals the positive impact of head coach Herry Iman Pierngadi’s presence.
Herry, better known as Herry IP, has long held a reputation for grooming world and Olympic champions for his home country Indonesia, and his appointment as Malaysia’s men’s doubles head coach in February brought renewed hope among local badminton fans.
However, Herry’s coaching debut abroad got off to a rocky start, with his charges playing below par and returning empty-handed from several tournaments in Europe, including the prestigious All England 2025 last month.
Herry, nicknamed the “Fire Dragon”, was also unable to accompany the players to Europe due to visa issues.
In fact, he previously described the All England campaign as a failure — one of the lowest points of his coaching career — after years of consistent success with the Indonesian team.
However, Herry’s courtside presence in China appeared to inject fresh inspiration, particularly for Aaron and Wooi Yik, who silenced a roaring home crowd at the Ningbo Olympic Sports Centre Gymnasium with a 21-19, 21-17 victory over China’s Chen Bo Yang-Liu Yi in the BAC final.
Even sweeter, the 2022 world champions clinched their maiden Asian crown to end an 18-year title drought for Malaysia in the men’s doubles. Choong Tan Fook-Lee Wan Wah last won the title for Malaysia at the 2007 edition in Johor Bahru.
Commenting on Aaron-Wooi Yik’s victory, Herry said the training programme he introduced two months ago had started to bear fruit, helping them produce strong performances and win every match in straight games.
“I’m pleased with Aaron and Wooi Yik’s win; it shows my training programme is working well.
“They’re already a solid pair, so I don’t need to give too much input, but there are still a few aspects that will take some time for them to adapt to,” he told Bernama.
The 62-year-old coach expressed hope that the two-time Olympic bronze medallists can maintain their consistency and go on to capture more titles.
