Iksan City: Malaysia’s World No. 6 men’s doubles pair, Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, lived up to expectations as they advanced to the quarterfinals of the Korea Masters on Thursday.
In their second-round match in Iksan City, the Malaysian duo defeated South Korea’s Ko Sung Hyun and Shin Baek Cheol in straight sets, 21-18, 21-17.
Highlights of Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik vs. Ko Sung Hyun/Shin Baek Cheol in the 2024 Korea Masters second round:
Interestingly, this match was a showdown between two former world champion pairs. Chia/Soh claimed their world title in 2022, while Ko Sung Hyun and Shin Baek Cheol won theirs in 2014.
While encounters between former world champions are not uncommon, it’s noteworthy that this particular clash took place at a BWF Super 300 event.
After surviving a tougher-than-expected three-set battle against Taiwan’s Chiang Chien Wei and Wei Chun in the first round, Chia/Soh needed just 32 minutes to dispatch Ko/Shin.
Their first meeting, at the 2021 French Open, saw the Korean pair come out on top, and they went on to win that tournament.
Chia/Soh, who also clinched bronze at the 2024 Paris Olympics, are competing in the Korea Masters to boost their chances of qualifying for the 2024 World Tour Finals in Hangzhou, China, next month.
Their next opponents will be South Korea’s Kim Jae Hyeon and Lee Sang Won.
Meanwhile, another Malaysian representative, Kok Jing Hong, saw his men’s singles campaign come to an end after losing to Japan’s fifth seed, Takuma Obayashi, 22-20, 21-14.
