Malaysia wary of Korea in Thomas Cup opener

Malaysia wary of Korea in Thomas Cup opener

JAKARTA (Agencies): Malaysia's Thomas Cup coach Kwan Yoke Meng
warned his shuttlers about South Korea as they would meet in the
opening round-robin match of blue group at the Thomas Cup and
Uber Cup championships in Kuala Lumpur starting on May 11.

"They have two strong pairs which are almost certain to
deliver them two points, so what they need is only to steal a
point from any three singles, which is not impossible for them,"
he said, as quoted by Bernama news agency.

Malaysia's first doubles Choong Tan Fook and Lee Wan Wah are
likely to challenge South Korea's doubles Kim Dong-moon and Ha
Tae-kwon in their match on May 12 at the Putra Stadium in Bukit
Jalil.

"Tan Fook and Wan Wah have defeated the South Koreans in the
last two meetings," Kwan said.

But another Malaysian pair of Cheah Soon Kit and Chan Choong
Ming are no contest for Lee Dong-soo and Yoo Yong-sung.

"Our advantage in the doubles lies with scratch pair Soon Kit
and Chong Ming," the coach said.

The injury of Yap Kim Hock, formerly Cheah's partner, upset
Malaysia's preparation.

Yap injured his left calf last month, and before he managed to
recover, he was slightly injured during training on Friday.

"His first injury is healed. Last night he was given medical
treatment for his new injury, which is in the same spot as the
old one," coach Park Joo-bong was quoted by Utusan Malaysia as
saying.

Kwan said Malaysian shuttlers must be able to win all three
singles matches against Korea if they want to win.

Malaysia's first singles Wong Choon Han will likely face old
hand Ahn Jae-chang, while second singles Ong Ewe Hock is
scheduled to meet Park Tae-sang, and third singles Roslin Hashim
is likely to take on Lee Hyun-il.

Veteran Rashid Sidek urged teammates to avoid succumbing to
pressure which could affect the squad preparation.

"We have to make all the preparations, hence we should not
exert undue pressure on ourselves as this will affect our mental
strength."

Malaysian Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Hishammuddin Tun
Hussein expressed hope that the shuttlers would give their full
concentration to wrest back the trophy they won in 1992.

"It is now up to the players to do it for the country. There's
nothing else I can ask of them," he said.

Malaysia is in the same group with Korea, Denmark and India.
In the yellow group, defending champion Indonesia will face
China, Sweden and England.

Meanwhile the Netherlands became the first team to arrive in
Kuala Lumpur on Thursday for the championships.

Head coach Martyn van Dooremolen did not express high
expectations in the Uber Cup match as singles Brenda Beenhakker
and doubles Erica van Denheuvel were injured and failed to join
the team.

"Brenda fractured her leg three weeks ago and Erica was
injured during the semifinals in the just-ended European
Championships."

The Netherlands is in the purple group with defending champion
China, South Korea and Sweden. In the pink group, runner-up
Indonesia will face Denmark, Japan and Malaysia.

With the absence of the two shuttlers, Dooremolen said the
team needed to revise its strategy. He also said that his team
arrived quickly so it could rest before facing South Korea in
their first match on May 12.

The Netherlands lost 1-3 in a friendly match against host
Malaysia on Friday.

Ng Mee Fen lost 3-11, 3-11 to Judith Meulendijks but Wong Miew
Kheng tied 1-1 after beating Karina de Wit 11-9, 5-11, 11-7.
Joanna Quay and Lim Pek Siah beat Carolien Glebbeek and Nicole
Van Hooren 15-9, 17-14. Chor Hooi Yee and Ang Li Peng defeated
Lotte Jonathans and Betty Krab 15-1, 15-3. (yan)