KUALA LUMPUR: National women’s doubles shuttler Teoh Mei Xing is both excited and determined to prove a point, after been handed a tough draw against world number two Baek Ha Na-Lee So Hee in the opening round of the 2024 Malaysia Open, next month.
The South Korean pair is on a good run this year, having won silver medals in the Asian Games and the season ending World Tour Finals both in Hangzhou, China.
Ha Na-So Hee also showed great consistency when they advanced to the nine finals in the World Tour in 2023, including the Malaysia Open in January, though only managed to claim the title thrice namely the Indonesia Open, Malaysia Masters and German Open.
However, Mei Xing, 26, is optimistic to pose a great challenge to the South Koreans as she and her partner Anna Cheong, who are ranked 64th in the world, are preparing rigorously for the season opener from Jan 9 -14 at the Axiata Arena, Bukit Jalil.
“It’s a very tough draw, but we don’t want to worry too much. We hope can upset, but we need to do our part (preparations) first to play well because they’re very strong.
“We have to be prepared to play long rally, then avoid mistakes and unforced errors. This will be our first time playing against them, so we want to take the experience and learn from them too,” said Mei Xing when met during training session at Akademi Badminton Malaysia (ABM) here, today.
She also stressed the need to work on the compatibility with Anna, especially on the speed and rhythm after the latter missed most of the 2023 season since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture on her right leg in October last year.
In the absence of Anna, Mei Xing build a temporary partnership with Go Pei Kee, while continue playing in the mixed doubles with Hoo Pang Ron.
Now that the national coaches had decided Mei Xing to only play in the women’s doubles, she hopes to have increased focus and return to the top 20 in the world ranking, after having been ranked 17th during the beginning of the year.
“A bit regret that I didn’t do well in the mixed doubles for the last few months, but now had to accept the decision. I had learned few things like braveness and taking a lot of shots in the front, I hope can use it for advantage in the women’s doubles category,” she said.
With Pang Ron, she won the Maldives International title and advanced to finals in the Iran Fajr International, while finished second in the Iran meet with Pei Kee in women’s doubles.–Bernama
