Aaron-Roy King Stun Taiwanese Pair, Reach Kumamoto Masters Semis

Malaysian men’s doubles pair Aaron Tai and Yap Roy King upset world No. 15 Lee Jhe-Huei and Yang Po-Hsuan of Taiwan on Friday (Nov 13) to book a place in the semi-finals of the Kumamoto Masters Japan, Bernama reported.

The world No. 57 combination, who won the Arctic Open last month on their debut as a partnership, needed only 28 minutes to win 21-16, 21-12 at the Kumamoto Prefectural Gymnasium.

Kumamoto Masters quarter-final win in 28 minutes

According to the Sarawak Tribune, the Malaysians had to work through a tight opening game before taking it 21-16. They were far more comfortable in the second game, keeping the Taiwanese under pressure to close it out 21-12.

It was the first meeting between the two pairs on the international stage, Sukanz reported.

The Badminton World Federation (BWF) noted that the result gave Aaron and Roy King their third semi-final from five tournaments together.

Danish pair stand in the way

Standing between the Malaysians and a second final together is Denmark’s Daniel Lundgaard and Mads Vestergaard, whom Bernama listed as 13th in the world.

The Danes reached the last four by beating home pair Hiroki Okamura and Kyohei Yamashita 21-14, 21-14. The BWF described Lundgaard and Vestergaard as among the leading contenders to qualify for the season finale.

The semi-final is scheduled for Saturday (Nov 14). The Super 500 tournament carries total prize money of US$500,000 (about RM2.04 million), Bernama said.

Malaysia’s last hope in Kumamoto

Aaron and Roy King are now Malaysia’s only remaining representatives at the tournament after the country’s other entries were knocked out, the Sarawak Tribune reported.

They opened their campaign with a 21-8, 21-14 win over Japan’s Kakeru Kumagai and Hiroki Nishi, before upsetting fourth seeds and senior teammates Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin 21-14, 21-15 in an all-Malaysian second-round match.

Since being paired, they have also reached the semi-finals of the Hylo Open, according to the same report.

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Aaron-Roy King Stun Taiwanese Pair, Reach Kumamoto Masters Semis