KUALA LUMPUR – Despite their dashed Paris Olympic hope, Malaysia’s mixed doubles duo Tan Kian Meng and Lai Pei Jing remain to pursue another mission for the year – shifting their focus toward accumulating as many ranking points as possible to qualify for the BWF World Tour Finals in Hangzhou, China, from December 11th to 15th.
The upcoming Badminton Asia Championships (BAC) in Ningbo, China, commencing next Tuesday, presents a prime opportunity for the duo given its Super 1000 status, offering valuable ranking points.
However, they face a tough hurdle in Indonesia’s Dejan Ferdinansyah and Gloria Emanuelle Widjaja, having previously lost two encounters against the Indonesian pair.
“My situation now with Pei Jing is to avoid putting excessive pressure on ourselves. We simply aim to give our best in every match we play, especially considering the strength of most mixed doubles pairs nowadays.
“While our main goal is to qualify for the World Tour Finals, and participating in that tournament again would be fantastic, we don’t want to burden ourselves with undue pressure.
“The most important thing for us is to enjoy our game and deliver our best performance,” said Kian Meng to Scoop.
Having qualified for the World Tour Finals twice before in Bali 2021 and Bangkok 2022, which saw them reach the semi-finals, Kian Meng and Pei Jing understand the magnitude of the task ahead.
To secure their spot for the third time, the Malaysian pair must intensify their efforts over the next eight months to break into the top eight BWF World Tour Finals rankings, as they currently hold the 21st position.
Regarding their prospects for the next Olympic cycle leading up to Los Angeles 2028, Kian Meng remained cautious due to lingering injuries.
“As our rankings dip and sponsorship support wanes, we’re increasingly shouldering our tournament expenses.
“Nonetheless, our passion for badminton remains unwavering. As long as we’re physically capable, we’ll continue to pursue our dreams,” he added. – April 4, 2024