SINGAPORE – Building on their strong end to 2023, Singapore’s Terry Hee and Jessica Tan continued their fine form with a comeback 15-21, 21-19, 21-12 win over Taiwanese world No. 12s Ye Hong-wei and Lee Chia-hsin in the first round of the season-opening Malaysia Open on Jan 9.
They will play Thailand’s world No. 20s Supak Jomkoh and Supissara Paewsampran in the round of 16 on Jan 11, as they look to rack up more ranking points and tighten their grip on an Olympic spot. The world No. 22s occupy the 13th and final open berth for Paris 2024. Spots 14 to 16 are reserved for America, Africa and Oceania.
Hee, 28, said: “We are happy we could turn the game around and keep our momentum going. Every match is a tough match at this level, and we will prepare with our coach and be mentally ready.”
They won the Guwahati Masters before reaching the final at the Odisha Masters in December, and were keen to start 2024 on a victorious note at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur.
After losing the first game, they fought back from 17-12 and 19-17 down in the second game to take the match to a decider, which they won following a 19-6 run.
National doubles head coach Paulus Firman said: “They didn’t play well until the middle of the second game. They were then able to organise the game with the right direction and choice of shots.
“They didn’t give up and Jessica did well to support and encourage Terry so he could focus back on the game. I hope this gives them belief in their own abilities, that they can compete and beat the top pairs.”
In the women’s singles, world No. 22 Yeo Jia Min beat Canada’s 24th-ranked Michelle Li 21-9, 21-14. Li had won three of their four previous meetings.
Li was making a comeback after knee surgery and Yeo cleverly stretched her around the court, exploiting her inability to retrieve shots in the short forehand corner to claim the win in 31 minutes.
In the round of 16, Yeo will be aiming to beat China’s world No. 8 Han Yue for only the second time in five encounters.
The 24-year-old, who is hoping to crack the top 14 in the world rankings to get a better seeding at Paris 2024, said: “I will be able to improve my ranking if I can maintain a good mindset this year.”
Men’s singles world No. 10 Loh Kean Yew, however, was unable to make it a perfect day for the Republic, as he lost 21-13, 21-15 to two-time defending champion and world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen.
After taking a 2-0 lead in the opener with some luck and quick reflexes, the 26-year-old was undone by unforced errors. Loh led 7-6 in the second game and put Axelsen under pressure with body shots, but the 30-year-old Dane was more consistent and pulled away for a convincing win.
Expressing disappointment, Loh said: “I need to continue to work on myself and hopefully things will get better.”
National singles head coach Kelvin Ho said Loh needs to be more consistent and have greater belief, and praised Yeo for having great follow-ups to her shots.
