KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s faint hope of advancing to the quarter-finals of the Uber Cup was officially extinguished after suffering their second defeat in a row at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Centre Gymnasium in Chengdu, China today.
Yesterday, Chinese Taipei put Malaysia in a precarious position after defeating Malaysia 4-1.
This left Malaysia needing a win against Thailand today to keep their campaign alive.
However, the Thai team proved too strong for Malaysia’s young squad, taking a commanding 3-0 lead in the tie.
In the women’s singles, world number 68 K. Letshanaa could not match the prowess of world number 16 Supanida Katethong, losing 21-17, 21-6 in just 31 minutes.
Team captain Teoh Mei Xing, alongside partner Go Pei Kee, could not replicate their heroics from the previous day, succumbing to the world number 10 duo Rawinda Prajongjai and Jongkolphan Kititharakul with a score of 21-10, 21-14 in 33 minutes.
“We have given our all in the match, the gap between us and top-10 players in terms of speed and ability is huge. There is a lot we need to improve in training.
“Their combination and speed were too good for us, even in training we have not encountered this level of pace,” said Mei Xing to SpoTV.
Then it was on 21-year-old women’s singles player Wong Ling Ching to keep Malaysia’s campaign going but she fell short against world number 19 Pornpawee Chochuwong, losing 21-11, 21-15 in 35 minutes.
In the second women’s doubles match, Chan Wen Tse and Tan Zhing Yi took on Laksika Kanlaha and Phataimas Muenwong, and were defeated 21-12, 21-8.
Third women’s singles player Siti Nurshuhaini Azman concluded the tie against Busanan Ongbamrungphan and was also thrashed in straight sets, 21-5, 21-8.
With Chinese Taipei and Thailand securing the top two spots in Group B, Malaysia finds itself without a point and unable to advance.
Their final match against Australia on Wednesday will serve as a formality to wrap up their campaign in Chengdu. – April 29, 2024