Arif-Roy King not giving up on Thomas Cup dream [WATCH]

KUALA LUMPUR: Men's doubles Arif Junaidi-Yap Roy King believe their ambition of a Thomas Cup debut remains alive, but only results will determine whether they can break into Malaysia's final selection.

The Thomas Cup will be held in Horsens, Denmark, from April 23 to May 3, with competition for places expected to be fierce in the men's doubles department.

World No. 17 Arif-Roy King currently sit fourth in the national pecking order, a position that leaves them with little margin for error.

They trail world No. 2 Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, world No. 5 Man Wei Chong-Tee Kai Wun and world No. 7 Goh Sze Fei-Nur Izzuddin Rumsani among Malaysia's established pairs.

Arif said the early part of the season will be crucial as selectors assess form across multiple tournaments.

However, their Malaysian Open campaign ended in the second round on Thursday after a 21-18, 21-11 defeat to India's world No. 3 Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty.

"We have to prove ourselves in the first three tournaments (of the year) with good results," he said.

"We are not in the top three right now, so we have to show it with results. For a good result, maybe at least we need to upset one top pair."

Arif-Roy King will continue their quest to earn a place in the Thomas Cup squad at the India Open next week. They have been drawn to meet Japan's world No. 35 Takumi Nomura-Yuichi Shimogami in the first round.