BANGKOK, May 16 — National professional men’s doubles pair Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani pushed India’s top seeds Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty to the limit before bowing out in a gruelling 82-minute Thailand Open semi-final tie at Nimibutr Stadium here today.

The world number nine Malaysians went down 21-19, 20-22, 16-21 to the world number four Indian pair in a closely fought encounter.

Sze Fei-Izzuddin’s coach, Ameer Amri Zainuddin, said his players had delivered a commendable performance against one of the world’s top pairs.

Ameer said the opening game was evenly contested, with the Malaysians managing to maintain their composure to edge ahead, but they lost momentum in the second game despite holding an advantage.

“We actually had a slight advantage playing against the wind in the second game, but they were too eager to finish off the match and the Indian pair capitalised on it,” he told Bernama after the match.

Despite losing, Ameer said their achievement in this tournament will boost their confidence ahead of the Malaysia Masters next week.

The third-seeded Malaysian duo started brightly and comfortably secured the opening game after leading for most of the contest.

However, the Indian pair raised their intensity in the second game to level the match despite a late fightback from the Malaysians.

In the decider, Sze Fei-Izzuddin struggled to cope with the relentless attacking play and solid defence displayed by the Indian combination.

Sze Fei admitted that consistency remains an area they need to improve, particularly in deciding games, after conceding too many early points.

“We lost too many points early in the decider, which affected our focus as we tried to chase the game,” he said.

Despite the defeat, Sze Fei-Izzuddin said they are determined to bounce back and deliver a strong performance at next week’s Malaysia Masters in front of the home crowd. — Bernama

BANGKOK, May 14 — National professional men’s doubles pair Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani emerged as Malaysia’s sole survivors in the Thailand Open 2026 after three other pairs crashed out in the second round at Nimibutr Stadium here today.

Goh-Izzuddin, the world number nine and tournament third seeds, were made to work hard by China’s Huang Di-Liu Yang before securing a 21-14, 24-22 victory in a 46-minute battle.

The Malaysian pair, who won the Indonesia Masters earlier this year, took control from the outset and comfortably claimed the opening game after leading throughout.

However, the young Chinese pair showed great resistance in the second game and held four game points at 20-16, only for Goh-Izzuddin to stage a remarkable comeback and seal the match 24-22 to book their place in the quarter-finals.

Izzuddin said their performance had improved steadily throughout the tournament and expressed satisfaction with their display today.

“We just focused on our game plan and, after taking the first game, we did not rush to finish the match. Instead, we stayed composed and continued to pressure our opponents.

“We were trailing by four game points in the second game, but we never gave up. We kept pushing until we earned our own game point and closed out the match,” he told Bernama after their match.

Izzuddin added that the pair are now confident of mounting a serious challenge for a podium finish at the tournament.

The last time Goh-Izzuddin competed in the tournament was in the 2022 edition, when their campaign ended in the quarter-finals after a defeat to Japan’s Takuro Hoki-Yugo Kobayashi.

Meanwhile, three other Malaysian men’s doubles pairs – Mohd Haikal Nazri-Bryan Jeremy Goonting, Chia Wei Jie-Teo Ee Yi and Nur Mohd Azriyn Ayub-Tan Wee Kiong – all failed to advance after losing their respective second-round matches.

The newly formed Haikal-Bryan pairing pushed top seeds and world number four duo Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty before bowing out 12-21, 19-21 in 44 minutes.

Independent pair Chia-Teo also exited the tournament after losing 24-26, 10-21 to Scotland’s Christopher Grimley-Matthew Grimley, while Nur Azriyn-Tan went down 21-13, 20-22, 14-21 to Thailand’s Peeratchai Sukphun-Pakkapon Teeraratsakul in a 65-minute encounter.

In tomorrow’s quarter-finals, Goh-Izzuddin will take on Christopher-Matthew and, should the Malaysians progress, they are expected to face top seeds Satwiksairaj-Chirag in the semi-finals. — Bernama