Mixed doubles pair Cheng Tang Jie/Toh Ee Wei and men’s pair Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun provided the bright spots for Malaysia on the opening day of the PETRONAS Malaysia Open 2025 at Axiata Arena tonight.

Tang Jie/Ee Wei eased past Chinese Taipei’s Wu Hsuan Yi/Yang Chui Yun with a commanding 21-8, 21-9 victory in just 27 minutes, lifting the spirits of the home crowd.

Man/Tee also brought cheers to the national camp as they overcame first round opponent Kenya Mitsuhashi/Hiroki Okamura in straight sets of 21-12, 21-17 in 38 minutes to set a second round clash against Chinese Taipei’s eight seed Le Jhe Huei/Yang Po Hsuan.

Independent women’s pair Vivian Hoo/Lim Chiew Sien were also through to the second round, facing a daunting task against top seed Liu Sheng Shu/Tan Ning of China.

World No. 5 Tang Jie/Ee Toh were the first to get through to the second round, bringing the much-needed cheer to the Malaysian camp, which faced a string of disappointments throughout the day. “It feels great to start the tournament on a strong note,” said Toh after the match. “The crowd’s support gave us the extra boost we needed.”

In contrast, Malaysia’s top women’s doubles pair, Pearly Tan/Thinaah Muralitharan, were left stunned by Indonesia’s Siti Fadia Silva Ramadhanti and Lanny Tria Mayasari. The third-seeded Malaysians took the first game but couldn’t sustain their momentum, falling 19-21, 21-14, 21-13 in a 72-minute battle. “We’re disappointed to lose at home,” admitted Thinaah. “We need to learn from this and prepare better for next week’s India Open.”

Malaysia’s other women’s doubles Goh Pei Kee/Teoh Mei Xing also faltered in the first round, losing to Chinese pair Jia Yi Fan/Zhang Shu Xian 17-21, 10-21.

Leong Jun Hao, making his Super 1000 Petronas Malaysia Open debut in the men’s singles, showed resilience before succumbing to China’s Lu Guang Zu 17-21, 21-16, 13-21 in an 80-minute clash. “I’m disappointed with the outcome,” said Jun Hao. “I made mistakes early on and struggled to adapt to his style. Still, I’ve given my all, and I’ll aim for better results this year.”

Malaysia’s world No. 20 mixed doubles pair, Hoo Pang Ron/Cheng Su Yin, also put up a valiant fight but narrowly lost to Chinese Taipei’s Lu Ming Che/Hung En Tzu 26-28, 21-14, 22-24. “We lost focus at crucial moments, but credit to our opponents for playing well,” said Pang Ron.

Adding to the day’s upsets, Denmark’s Daniel Lundgaard/Mads Vestergaard shockingly dumped Malaysia’s independent men’s doubles pair, Goh Sze Fei/Nur Izzuddin.

The biggest upset was when the world No. 1 men’s doubles pair, Kim Astrup/Anders Rasmussen, suffered a shock defeat to Chinese Taipei’s Chiu Hsiang Cheh/Wang Chi Lin while former world No.1 and fourth seed Viktor Axelsen, shockingly faltered with a 17-21, 13-21 loss at the hands of Chinese Taipei’s Lee Cheuk Yu.

Malaysia will look to redeem their fortunes in tomorrow’s encounters, with fifth seed Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik leading the charge against USA’s Chen Zhi Yi and Presley Smith, Wan Arif Junaidi/Yap Roy King against Korea’s Kim Won Ho/Seo Seung Jae. Debutants Ong Xin Yee/Carmin Ting will take on Chinese Taipei’s Sung Shuo Yun/Yu Chien Hui in the women’s doubles.

Malaysia’s other challengers in tomorrow’s first round include women’s singles Goh Jin Wei and independent men’s pair Ong Yee Sin/Teo Ee Yi who will take on (fourth seed) Fajar Alfian/Rian Ardianto of Indonesia.

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